Clarification from the agency

NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below. Area of Consideration - Eligible applicants will be referred in the following order: 1. Current permanent employees of the Battle Creek VA Medical Center and employees of the outpatient clinics located in Muskegon, Lansing, Wyoming and Benton Harbor. 2. All other VA employees. 3. Current permanent Federal employees of other agencies. 4. All other applicants.

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The Medical Supply Technician (MST) functions in all areas of the instrumentation and delivery process. Duties include but are not limited to:

Decontamination

• Collects, receives, cleans, and decontaminates the full range of instruments, supplies and equipment used in the medical center's wards/patient care units, dental clinic and special procedure units.
• Selects the appropriate methods and procedures for removing gross soil (contamination).
• Sorts all items by method of processing and inspects items for damage prior to processing, disassembles for cleaning.
• Operates, maintains and adjusts distinct types of processing equipment.
• Changes and resets timers and selects different parameter requirements on decontamination cycles.
• Identifies and properly disposes of individual use items.
• Adheres to and/or monitors both Facility and SPS Infection Controls Guidelines.
• Responsible for determining the proper techniques for pick-up, transportation, cleaning and disinfecting of contaminated items.
• Brings all infection control issues/problems to the attention of the responsible supervisor.
• Performs and documents daily operational checks and records for all sterilization equipment.
• Disassembles medical equipment as necessary for disinfection, including complex items.
• The incumbent disassembles, processes and reassembles complex life-supporting equipment.
• Incumbent disassembles a full range of instruments, trays / sets used in the procedure rooms and special procedure areas.

Preparation

• Incumbent assembles a full range of instrument trays/sets for wards, clinics, and special procedures units.
• Inspects instruments for cleanliness, damage, and tested for proper function before reassembling.
• Trays/sets are assembled as designed by local established procedures and by the requirements.
• Incumbent selects the appropriate method of sterilization according to manufacture instructions, design constraints and compatibility of the item with the sterilizing agent.
• Incumbent will place materials on sterilizer cart for terminal sterilization in accordance with the sterilization method and equipment being used.
• Regularly performs quality control tests on all sterilization equipment such as Biological monitoring, Bowie Dick and chemical indicators.
• Performs quality assurance inspections on material terminally sterilized prior to storage.
• Verifies and signs sterilizer records after each cycle before any item is removed from the sterilizer.
• Maintains daily documentation of biological monitoring and submits the monthly reports to the Infection Control Committee.
• Serves as a second review for assembled instrument sets to ensure accuracy.

Distribution

• Assembles and loads delivery carts according to schedules and delivers instrumentation to units in a safe, yet timely manner.
• Fills special and emergency request for instrumentation as applicable.
• Advises medical personnel on availability of instrumentation, sterile items, possible substitutes and efficient use of SPS specific equipment.
• Routinely replenishes supply shelves in SPS and notifies supervisor of depleting inventory or increased usage of supplies.
• Keeps record of supplies and equipment used and notifies supervisor of unusual requests or instrumentation usage patterns.
• Routinely inventories SPS supplies and equipment, using an automated system. Keeps records and determines reordering needs.
• Completes all logs and records involved with the processing of medical items and trays, utilizing equipment call-in sheets, equipment logs, etc.

Work Schedule: 9:00 am to 5:30 pm
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases
Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)
Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.
Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 91746A, 91747A, 91748A, 91749A
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All 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 VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• 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.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements:

• Citizenship - Citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VH Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A
• English Language Proficiency - English Language Proficiency - You must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d)
• Experience and/or Education -
  • Experience - Six months of experience that demonstrates the ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work; OR
  • Education - One year above high school that included at least 6 semester hours in health care related courses such as sterile processing, nursing assistant, hospital corpsman, and operating room and surgical technician courses or other courses related to the position; OR
  • Experience/Education Combination - Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.

Grandfathering Provision. 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).

GS-03 Medical Supply Technician - Experience/Education Requirement: None beyond the basic requirements.

GS-04 Medical Supply Technician -

• Experience/Education Requirement: To qualify for the GS-04 you must meet one of the following experience or education requirements:
  • Experience: Six months experience as a MST, operating room or surgical technician or other position that demonstrated knowledge of sterile processing in a clinical setting; OR
  • Education: Two years of education above high school that included at least 12 semester hours in courses related to the occupation. NOTE: Successful completion of a course for medical technicians, hospital corpsmen, medical service specialists, or nursing assistants obtained in a training program given by the Armed Forces, the US. Maritime Service, or hospitals under close medical and professional supervision, may be substituted on a month-for-month basis for up to 6 months of experience.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate the KSAs below:
  • Knowledge of universal precautions for safety and prevention of cross contamination.
  • Basic knowledge of medical terminology to assemble specialty operating room/clinic instrument sets.
  • Basic knowledge of sterilization and cleaning equipment.
  • Ability to communicate both orally and in writing.

GS-05 Medical Supply Technician -

• Experience/Education Requirement: To qualify for the GS-05 you must meet one of the following experience or education requirements:
  • Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-04). Examples of specialized experience include but are not limited to: Performing segments of work pertaining to the decontamination, sterilization and inspection of reusable medical equipment (RME); completing segments of work pertaining to the assembly of basic sets and trays for use in the medical center; operating equipment involved in sterilization processes; preparing operating room case carts; OR
  • Education: Four academic years above high school leading to a Bachelor's degree with at least 12 semester hours in courses related to the occupation or a Bachelor's degree.

• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate the KSAs below:
  • Basic knowledge of surgical instruments used in operating rooms and clinic settings.
  • Basic knowledge of event-related packaging in regards to sterility.
  • Knowledge of sterilization and cleaning equipment.

GS-06 Medical Supply Technician (Full Performance Level) -

• Experience Requirement: To qualify for the GS-06 you must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-05). Examples of specialized experience include but are not limited to: Removing soil, blood, tissue fragments, body fluids, and other containments by wiping, soaking, rinsing, and scrubbing; Inspecting packages for indications of proper sterilization, assembling basic sets and trays used throughout a medical facility including those used in the operating room; preparing, loading, and operating sterilizers such as steam, Sterrad, Steris, ETO, and a high level disinfecting scope reprocessor; prepares operating room case carts daily using surgery schedule.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience above, you must demonstrate the following KSAs:
  • Knowledge of surgical instruments used in operating rooms and clinic settings.
  • Knowledge of universal precautions for safety and prevention of cross contamination.
  • Working knowledge of medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, microbiology, medical conditions and procedures.
  • Knowledge of sterility principles in regard to instrumentation.
  • Ability to read and interpret written instructions and procedures.

Preferred Experience: One year of experience in Sterile Processing, Nationally HSPA or CBSPD Certified.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS 6. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of 3 to 6.

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

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 MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

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.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.