The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Service, is recruiting for a Cytotechnologist - Cytology Department, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm.

Duties

The incumbent serves as an advanced cytotechnologist with the duties of planning, directing and carrying out functions for the cytology area. This includes a wide variety of technical procedures to prepare diversified cytologic specimens for microscopic evaluation. The incumbent also examines these specimens under the microscope, evaluating cellular characteristics for the purpose of detecting abnormal cells. The incumbent is required to develop a differential diagnosis for each specimen, which includes a wide variety of inflammatory, benign pathologic and carcinomatous diseases. In addition, the incumbent serves as a subject-matter expert for all cytology procedures and examinations. The incumbent uses developmental, evaluative, technical and managerial skills for day-to-day operations of the area and makes long term decisions or recommendations that affect the cytology section of the service. Work Schedule: Full time, Monday - Friday, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 00802-A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

Qualifications

BASIC REQUIREMENTS. To qualify for appointment as a cytotechnologist, all applicants must possess the following: a. Citizenship. Citizen of the United States (U.S.). (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g, of this part.) b. Education. Individuals must have successfully completed a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college/university and successfully completed a Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs accredited cytotechnology program. c. Foreign Education. To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must have been submitted to a private organization approved by the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs. d. Certification (1) Candidates must currently possess the Cytotechnologist (CT) (ASCP) or Specialist in Cytotechnology (SCT) (ASCP) certification given by the ASCP Board of Certification. (2) Loss of Certification. An employee who fails to maintain the required certification must be removed from the occupation, which may also result in termination of employment. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Grade Determinations. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: Cytotechnologist, GS-11 (a) Experience. The candidate must have one year of creditable experience equivalent to the journey level (GS-9) that is directly related to the position to be filled. (b) Assignments. For all assignments above the journey level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), range of variety, and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. At the advanced level, the cytotechnologist independently performs and monitors processes such as smear preparation, slide fixation, cell block preparation, monolayer filtration processing, and staining. If a discrepancy is identified with these processes, the cytotechnologist will troubleshoot and take corrective action. The cytotechnologist may act as a technical resource in writing and establishing new processes or procedures. The cytotechnologist performs a full range of specialized tasks, including collecting, compiling, and analyzing data according to the laboratory quality management program. The cytotechnologist uses these laboratory data to implement any needed quality improvement initiatives. The incumbent will research, test, validate, and implement new procedures and equipment. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the KSAs: i. Ability to independently determine specimen adequacy using complex specialized testing methods or techniques during Endoscopic Ultrasound, Endobronchial Ultrasound, and other Fine Needle Aspiration procedures. ii. Knowledge of pre-analytical, analytical, and post-analytical processes to establish and monitor the overall laboratory quality management and quality control program, and initiate corrective action as needed. iii. Skill in collecting, compiling, and analyzing data for quality assurance, statistics, trends and reports, and implementing quality improvement initiatives. iv. Skill in researching, testing, validating, and implementing new procedures and equipment. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System 10701 East Boulevard Cleveland, OH 44106 US
• Name: Joanna Froemsdorf
• Phone: 479-236-1904
• Email: [email protected]