Clarification from the agency

ALL US CITIZENS. DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY: This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority (5 CFR 337.201) for this occupation.

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The Health Technician - Surgical Technician participates with the surgical team members in planning and implementing complex procedures under the general supervision of the surgical team. Major duties and responsibilities include but not limited to:

• Setting up sterile field with all required items for each procedure such as air-powered equipment, fiber
• optic equipment, laparoscopic equipment, microscopes, lasers, arthroscopy equipment, urologic equipment, recording devices, and other operating room supplies and equipment
• Performing, planning and discussing each procedure with surgical professionals and assuring that all supplies and equipment are available prior to the surgical procedure
• Preparing, organizing, and maintaining complex sterile surgical set-ups
• Observing and responding promptly to each stage of the surgical procedure and anticipates the needs of the surgeon
• Utilizing standard precautions and following all infection control policies and procedures when handling
• specimens, supplies, and equipment
• Assisting the team members with care of the patient, i.e., positioning, prepping, and obtaining supplies
• Performing sponge, sharps, and instrument counts in conjunction with the Registered Nurse circulator
• Assisting the surgeon by performing such procedures as suctioning, holding retractors, applying skin
• staples, and cutting sutures
• Assisting in training other members of the Operating Room (OR) team in the operation of equipment, sterile technique, handling of instruments, and OR procedures
• Performing non-technical maintenance of equipment and maintaining adequate stock of supplies and materials in OR area
• Reprocessing all reusable medical equipment and instrumentation; operating sterilizers according to manufacturer's instructions; and checking packaging of all sterile items following sterilization
• Checking patients in and obtaining vital signs; setting up the patient in the provide examination room; and preparing the provider clinic rooms for beginning of the day operations
• Aiding Medical Support Assistants with administrative clinic duties as needed
• Supporting Gastroenterology (GI) clinic operations by adding patient information into medical records; preparing procedure room; following manufacturers instruction for use (IFU) for all endoscopes; and cleaning and restocking for GI rooms
• Performing other related duties and assigned

Work Schedule: Monday to Friday; Variable shifts that are currently limited to 8 hour shifts (07:00 a.m. to 03:30 p.m.) or 10 hour shifts (07:00 a.m. to 05:30 p.m.). These may be subject of change. On-call required for evenings, after hours, weekends, and holidays.
Position Description Title/PD#: Health Technician-Surgical Technician/PD11576A
Physical Requirements: Duties regularly require providing manual assistance in lifting and positioning patients, most of which are stages of unconsciousness. There are extensive periods of regular and recurring standing, walking, bending, lifting, pushing, reaching, and prolonged stretching to provide easy accessibility of instruments and supplies for the surgeon. Incumbent must be dexterous in passing instruments to surgeons without compromising principles of aseptic technique and in a manner requiring little or no effort from the surgeon.
Designated Drug-Testing Position: Applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with the VA. Applicants will not be appointed to the position if a verified positive drug test result is received.
English Language Proficiency: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job
• Subject to a background/suitability investigation
• Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
• May serve a probationary period
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• A complete application package; Resume, Transcripts, etc
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents).
• Effective May 7, 2025, driver’s licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT for Health Aid and Technician Series (0640): Positions in this series range widely in type and include support duties to medical or health personnel such as audiologists, speech pathologists, medical officers, and optometrists. Therefore, technician experience is experience that required application of the knowledge, methods, and techniques of the position to be filled.

In addition to the Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR), candidates must also meet ONE of the following requirements:

GS-07 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-06 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes: preparing and protecting sterile field during surgery, such as applying surgical drapes, prepping patient, performing counts of instruments used, etc.; determining the effectiveness of sterilization, packaging, storage, and shelf life; handling medical instruments, supplies and equipment during all surgical procedures; performing proper cleaning techniques and handling/rotation of sterile supplies; and handling contaminated items, quality control, and personal hygiene. (CLEAR DETAILS OF EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: Your resume must show complete information for each job entry, such as beginning and ending dates of employment, duties performed, and/or total hours worked per week.) OR,
Education (GS-07): Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have one full year of graduate education in those instances where it is directly related to the work of the position (Health Technician). One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. (UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED: If you do not submit your transcript, your application may not be reviewed.) OR,
Combination (GS-07): Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and graduate education, as described above. If graduate education is used to meet specialized experience requirements, then such education must include courses directly related to the work of the position. (UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED: If you do not submit your transcript, your application may not be reviewed.

To calculate, first identify the percentage of required education you have earned (when substituting, you cannot use the first 60 semester hours that you earned). Then identify the percentage of required experience you possess. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify at the GS-07. For example, an applicant who has 9 semester hours of graduate level education (i.e. 50% of graduate education required) and 6 months of creditable specialized experience (i.e. 50% of the required experience) would equal 100% of the required experience for the position A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Applicants will be referred in the order in which they were received.