Clarification from the agency

This job is open to current permanent Department of Veteran Affairs employees and status candidates

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Major Duties Include:

• Phlebotomy Duties and Specimen Collection
• Responsible for proper patient identification, proper sample procurement, and proper specimen labeling following guidelines from The Joint Commission (T JC) and the College of American Pathologists (CAP) "Patient Safety Goals. Properly identifies all patients with two identifiers to assure the accuracy of the specimen collected and documents collection appropriately. Uses judgment and independently resolves identification discrepancies through staff contacts as needed.
• Performs phlebotomy procedures following a sequence of steps approved for sample collection. Independently responsible for selecting the best venipuncture site, most suitable phlebotomy equipment ( needle type, size and length), most appropriate cleansing agent(s), proper collection vials and assessing the patient's condition before, during and after the procedure. Attends to the patients while in their care during the phlebotomy procedure. Is attentive to patient needs, actions and complaints. Has knowledge of medical conditions/therapy (e.g. diabetes, anticoagulation, fainting, hematomas) and applies that knowledge while the patient is in their care.
• Independently determines the need and initiates a Medical Emergency, Code Blue and/or Code Green for a violent patient. In the event of a Medical Emergency or Code Blue, the phlebotomist administers initial intervention until specialized assistance arrives on the scene. Observes and reports any physical or mental changes while patients are being drawn.
• Orients and trains new employees/students in all aspects of phlebotomy and waived testing. Assists in evaluating new procedures to improve patient care and makes recommendations to management.
• He/She performs established quality control procedures to check the accuaracy and validity of the test results. He/She identifies instrument malfunctions, if applicable, and takes appropriate action to correct them.
• Receives request for testing specimens into laboratory and verifies the accuracy and completeness of the request.

Work Schedule: Monday- Friday 7am-3:30pm
Telework: Not Authorized
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Medical Technician - Phlebotomy/PD16120-A

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
• 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)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period 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 probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/30/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-4 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-3. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You must meet the OPM individual occupational requirements (IOR) for the Medical Technician Series, 0645 as follows:

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

• Specialized Experience: Technical medical laboratory support work such as performing laboratory tests and examinations (chemical, microbiologic, hematologic and blood banking) and preparing reports of findings or (b) technical support work in a closely related field, e.g., biological laboratory technician work, that required application of the methods and techniques for the position to be filled. OR
• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have Successful completion of (a) an associate-degree course of study of which the 2nd year of the 2-year program included successful completion of a training course of approximately a year's duration in a certified laboratory assistant school approved by a nationally recognized accrediting agency; (b) 1 year of study that included 6 semester hours in chemistry and/or the biological sciences, plus successful completion of the training course as described in (a) above for GS-3; or (c) 2 years of study that included at least 12 semester hours of chemistry and/or biological science course work that must have been directly related to the specialization of the position to be filled.

In addition to meeting the OPM Individual Occupation Requirement above you must meet the specialized experience below:

GS-4: Knowledge of the technical methods and procedures for phlebotomy and waived testing. Requires knowledge of the basic principles of biological science to assess patients, work completed, samples collected, etc. Knowledge and skills in drawing blood for a variety of tests, from a variety of sites using a variety of methods. Insuring that the correct samples are collected in a proper manner and containers to ensure obtaining the best specimens providing the best results possible. Knowledge of a variety of reference labs (VA and non-VA), specimen requirements (sample volume, storage temperature requirements, processing requirements, light sensitivity requirements) sufficient to assure receipt of a suitable sample by the proper testing lab.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Computer Skills
• Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)
• Patient Care
• Quality Assurance
• Specimen Collection

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.

Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: The work requires regular and recurring physical exertion such as prolonged/frequent standing, bencing, walking, grasping, carrying, speaking, and wrist strain due to prolonged use of PC keywords. Also, requires occasional sitting, reaching, bending and stooping, lifting, carrying, pushing and pulling up to 50 pounds, with assistance if needed. The work may require specific physical characteristics and abilities such as dexterity (to perform intricate collection or specimen processing) and color vision

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

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.

Area of Consideration- Eligible applications will be reviewed and referred in the following order:
1. Current permanent VA employees of the facility.
2. All other VA employees.
3. Current permanent Federal employees of other agencies.
4. All other applicants

Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment.

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.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the 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.