Clarification from the agency

Open to All US Citizens NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

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Duties may include but are not limited to;

• Incumbent will plan and carry out procedures, resolve issues and deviations in the work assignment; troubleshoot complex instruments with minimal supervision.
• Ability to produce diagnostic quality images and Doppler frequency sift records using M-mode, two-dimensional, pulsed, and continuous wave Doppler spectral display, and color flow Doppler imaging.
• Knowledge of normal echocardiographic findings and deviations produced by a wide variety of cardiovascular diseases.
• Ability to perform complex procedures such as cardiac studies of the four chambers of the heart and valves using sector scanning techniques to detect stenotic and incompetent valves, chamber enlargement, and pericardial effusion and cardiovascular studies deriving pressure gradients across obstructed valves, etc.
• Ability to perform complementary ultrasonic examinations including Bubble studies, contrast echocardiography (Difinity), (invasive) stress echocardiography, and transesophageal echocardiography (TEEs).
• Ability to adapt transducer positioning, instrument controls, and examination techniques to the individual patient being studied and the problem being evaluated including recognizing pertinent abnormalities and documenting abnormal findings.
• Supports physicians or medical professionals in using diagnostic instruments, equipment, and accessories.
• Sets up equipment and supplies pre-procedure and collects data.
• Assures that all Radiation safety rules and regulations are observed to safeguard patients, operators, and fellow employees against unnecessary radiation.
• Conduct or assist with examinations and treatment procedures such as EKGs, TEEs, stress echocardiograms, and both contrast/saline bubble studies.
• Performs and clips complete diagnostic echocardiograms using M-mode, Two-Dimensional, and Doppler (Continuous Wave, Pulsed Wave, Color Flow) for both outpatient and inpatients in areas such as the cardiology department, inpatient wards, operating room, and emergency department.
• Processes and edits all studies or other recording media as assigned and scans reports into patient's medical record.
• Coordinates equipment maintenance and repair with BME.
• Recognizes abnormalities and brings them to the attention of the appropriate physician.
• Schedules procedures and coordinates appointments with other services as appropriate. Maintains specialized supplies pertaining to the equipment and instruments used in the Cardiology Procedure areas.
• Pre-cleans Reusable Medical Equipment (RME) utilizing standard operating procedure for the specific model.
• Maintains competency for all applicable reusable medical equipment.
• Receives phone calls from patients, their families, physicians, and other Medical Centers to assist with appointments, reports, and results.
• Completes consults and progress notes, checks patients in and out of appointments in CPRS and DHCP.
• Responsible for being self-directed in the delivery of patient care under moderate to close supervision and instruction by a registered nurse and/or supervisor.
• Consistently communicates and treats customers (patients, visitors, volunteers, and all Medical Center staff) in a courteous, tactful, and respectful manner.
• Handles conflict and problems in dealing with the customer constructively and appropriately.
• Embraces a continuous culture of safety for veterans, their families, visitors, and other employees.

Work Schedule: Full time: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm.
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not authorized.
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized.
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. A higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).
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.
Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
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 authorized.
Virtual: Not authorized..
Functional Statement #: FS-613-25270-F.
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.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• 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

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Education: There are no specific educational requirements for this occupation. Education may be substituted for experience only at the GS-4 and GS-5 levels.
• Licensure or Certification: Licensure or certification as either Registered Diagnostic Cardiac Sonographers through the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography or a Registered Cardiac Sonographer through the Cardiovascular Credentialing International is not required for this occupation; However, it is strongly desirable at the GS 6 or above as evidence of possession of the essential knowledge, skills and abilities. (For all specialties identified in this standard, Basic and Advanced Cardiac Life Support certifications are desirable. Training which does not result in official certification does not meet this definition.)
• Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.
• English Language Proficiency: Medical Instrument Technicians must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with chapter 2, section D, paragraph 5a, this part.

Grade Determinations:GS-8 Medical Instrument Technician (Echocardiography). Full Performance Level:(a) Experience: At least one (1) year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level (GS-7) which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the position to be filled. This would be experience which provided the overall knowledge, skills, and abilities to conduct diagnostic echocardiography examinations in complex and unusual cases.

• GS-7 Experience includes:
  • Ability to scan transthoracic echocardiograms in all views with colorflow and some Doppler.
  • Ability to conduct cardiac testing to determine the severity and variety of cardiac problems, i.e., valvular dysfunction, myocardial wall kinesia, effusions, endocardial lesions, etc.
  • Knowledge of the set-up for transesophageal echocardiograms.
  • Ability to set up and adjust the ultrasound equipment to meet the conditions of the examination and the patient and to operate the equipment for more complex, but standardized procedures

(b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Ability to produce diagnostic quality images and Doppler frequency shift recordings using M-mode, two-dimensional, pulsed and continuous wave Doppler spectral display, and colorflow Doppler imaging.
• Knowledge of normal echocardiographic findings and deviations produced by a wide variety of cardiovascular diseases.
• Ability to perform complex procedures such as cardiac studies of the four chambers of the heart and valves using sector scanning techniques to detect stenotic and incompetent valves, chamber enlargement, and pericardial effusion and cardiovascular studies deriving pressure gradients across obstructed valves, etc.
• Ability to perform complementary ultrasonic examinations (including noninvasive) transthoracic, Bubble studies and contrast echocardiography, (invasive) stress echocardiography, and transesophageal echocardiography.
• Ability to adapt transducer positioning, instrument controls, and examination techniques to the individual patient being studied and the problem being evaluated including recognizing pertinent abnormalities and documenting abnormal findings.

(c) Certification: No certification or registration is required as either Registered Diagnostic Cardiac Sonographers through the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography or a Registered Cardiac Sonographer through the Cardiovascular Credentialing International. Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS) and Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certifications are desirable for applicants at this level.

(d) Assignment: This represents the full performance level. Echocardiography technicians at this level identify and record anomalies indicative of disease, injury, or other medically significant condition from ultrasound imaging and simultaneous recordings of the Doppler. They incorporate the causes and results of a variety of symptoms and conditions into a plan of ultrasonic diagnostic examination. They change and develop sounding techniques to accommodate such variables as limited patient mobility, variation in physical condition or dimension of the patient, presence of prosthesis or foreign objects, and ultrasonic response of different body parts. They produce diagnostic quality images and Doppler frequency recordings using M-Mode, two-dimensional, and Doppler ultrasound.

Preferred Experience: Certification as either Registered Diagnostic Cardiac Sonographers through the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography or a Registered Cardiac Sonographer through the Cardiovascular Credentialing International Is highly desirable
*Registered Echo Tech, with 3 to 5 years of experience is also highly desirable.

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-8.

Physical Requirements: This position requires visual acuity, keen hearing, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. This position requires potentially long periods of continued walking, standing, stooping, sitting, bending, pulling, and pushing. Transferring patients and objects may be required. Mechanical inpatient lifts are provided. The incumbent may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don protective clothing in isolation situations or operative/invasive procedures. The incumbent may occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative secondary to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders. The incumbent must be a mature, flexible, sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations, and able to shift priorities based on patient needs. Must complete annual Employee Health requirements as a condition of employment.

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.