Clarification from the agency

This is an INTERNAL ANNOUNCEMENT and is limited to current permanent VA Nationwide employees. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

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This position functions above the full performance level for the Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical) position and serves in an advanced role. The incumbent performs a full range of duties and is responsible for day-to-day operation of telehealth services at the assigned location and between the assigned location and remote sites of care as well as participating in the programmatic development and advanced support of the facility-wide telehealth program. The incumbent is expected to be able to exercise independent judgement and will often provide guidance to less experienced staff members and will require minimal direct supervision. This advanced position functions above the full performance level and therefore requires the performance of higher-level duties which must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time.

The higher-level duties associated with this advanced-level position may include, but are not limited to:

• Coordinating, installing, maintaining and managing the inventory of telehealth technologies including hardware and software with assistance of Biomed and IT.
• Providing established standardized competency based training, guidance and information on the use of advanced telehealth technologies to patients, staff, and providers.
• Providing established standardized competency-based training for telehealth technology, facilitating interactive simulations for clinical staff participating in telehealth programs.
• Participating in performance improvement activities aimed at improving the efficiency of the patient telehealth processes.
• Developing reporting procedures, sampling techniques and measurements at various points in the telehealth processes to identify/analyze inherent weaknesses in work and procedures.
• Coordinating clinic set up and monitoring of workload capture and issues for assigned patient and provider clinics including telehealth resource based scheduling.
• Supporting designated complex telehealth programs that require advanced technical skillsets.
• Preparing the clinical environment, which may include preparing medical and telecommunications equipment to be used for clinical examination and treatment.
• Serving as a telepresenter, within scope of practice, during clinical video telehealth (CVT) and VA Video Connect (VVC) encounters including tasks such as establishing and maintaining video conferencing connections, making introductions between patient site and provider site, following instructions of a clinician to facilitate an effective clinical encounter.
• Serving as an imager and manager of clinical data for store and forward telehealth (SFT) clinical encounters including tasks such as capturing images, collecting data and transmitting them electronically for clinical review in accordance with VHA national guidelines.
• Taking measures to ensure patient care is delivered safely by following appropriate procedures for the cleaning of clinical equipment and the care environment while following all patient safety guidelines, protocols, and procedures.
• Receiving and scheduling requests for simple and complex intra-facility, and interfacility telehealth appointments using an electronic resource-based scheduling system.

Work Schedule: Tour will be set by supervisor based on program placement, and may be either Monday- Friday, 7:30-4:00pm CT or 8:00am-4:30 CT.
Remote: This position is designated as remote. The option for remote work will be assessed continuously, and the selected individual may need to return to a VA office if required. The selectees must live within 50 miles of a VA Medical Center (NOTE: This does not include CBOCs). Internet speed tests may be requested to verify/determine suitability for remote work for candidates in consideration under this announcement.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized
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

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 02/27/2026.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS:
(a) Citizenship. Citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g, this part.)

(b) Education and/or Experience Combination:

1. Experience. One year of experience in a health care field that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work such as but not limited to a medical or clinical assistant (or technician) or health technician; OR
2. Education. Four academic years above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with courses related to the occupation (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED); OR
3. Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). Examples are listed below:
   • Six months of experience in the health care field and two years of education above high school that included at least six semester hours in health care related courses such as, biological science, surgical technician courses, nursing assistant or other courses related to the position; or an associate's degree in a health care related field; OR
   • Six months of experience in the health care field and successful completion of a course for health care technicians, hospital corpsmen, or medical service specialists given by the U.S. Armed Forces.

Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical), GS-7 (Advanced) Requirements:
(a) Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower (GS-6) grade level. Equivalent experience includes screening patients for Telehealth modality and referring patients that do not meet established criteria to appropriate care; communicating effectively with administrative and professional staff, and obtaining assistance for issues that may arise or backlogs that cannot be resolved in a timely manner; performing imaging duties in accordance with VHA national telehealth guidelines such as: capture and transmission of clinical images and/or data, obtains consent as necessary, generates consults according to established procedures for each telehealth specialty, transmits images or clinical data to the electronic medical record, provides patient education regarding general anatomy, disease processes and prevention as appropriate, and takes appropriate action based on the providers' findings and recommendations; facilitating real-time Telehealth encounters by providing hands on assistance and reporting clinical observations under the direction of a licensed independent Practitioner or clinical specialist; schedules, confirms and coordinates Telehealth services between internal and external VA and non-VA sites; analyzes own work flow to determine potential problem areas and recommends corrective action to improve coordination between various units/facilities; has regular contact with the Facility Telehealth Coordinator to work out process issues, equipment needs, problems, data collection and any other logistical issues; responsible for conducting routine inventories and consistently tracking location/status of Telehealth technology located at assigned site; and communicates with National Telehealth Technology Help Desk to facilitate troubleshooting, repair, and coordination of replacement equipment as necessary.

(b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

• Ability to use independent technical judgment to analyze, evaluate and resolve problems.
• Knowledge of quality control and assurance procedures and principles of performance improvement
• Ability to function effectively between competing priorities.
• Knowledge of proper maintenance and troubleshooting of telehealth equipment.
• Ability to work with a team to provide technical guidance, plan, organize and coordinate activities of a health technician in order to effectively complete job duties of assignment such as distributing workload, monitoring the status and progress of work, monitoring accuracy of work.
• Ability to assist in Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical) development, outcome management and strategic planning.
• Ability to perform successful knowledge transfer regarding the use of telehealth technologies.

Preferred Experience: 3+ years telehealth experience preferred.

All qualifying experience you possess must be clearly described in your application package. We will not make assumptions when reviewing applications. Failure to demonstrate your experience in your resume may result in disqualification. It is strongly recommended that you write to each KSA in your application package.

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

Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

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.