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Health Technician

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System (Las Vegas)

Summary

This position serves as the Mental Health Technician that provides technical, patient care, personnel, computer, and data management support services for the Nursing. Mental Health Service at the VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System (VASNHS). There is a 2-page requirement for resumes. See Additional Instructions below.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
05/11/2026 to 05/18/2026
Salary
$46,382 - $60,297 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 6
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Las Vegas, NV
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
6
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
Yes
Announcement number
CBSW-12957703-26-TI
Control number
868527500

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Duties

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Duties include but are not limited to:
- Assists the interdisciplinary team in the care and treatment of patients receiving medical care for psychiatric or substance abuse treatment, PTSD, and other behavioral health conditions.
- Observes, collects data, documents, and reports to the professional team changes in patient behavior, attitude, physical complaints, appearance, vital signs and/or changes in the patents' condition that may be related to medications, sensory distortions, or medical conditions. Reports reactions to/responses to treatment.
- Maintains a therapeutic and safe milieu by identifying, reporting, and eliminating potential hazards.
- Completes unit rounds and patient safety checks. Completes hazardous items checks of unit, patients, and their belongings.
- Performs one-to-one observations of patients.
- Conducts camera monitoring of unit and patients. Identifies patient at risk for suicide/self-­harm, falls, disruptive behavior etc.
- Intervenes and restrains violent or potentially violent or suicidal Veterans using therapeutic communication or physical means required by PMDB training.
- Provides general Mental Health Technician support work for the unit.
- Maintains patient records/charts.
- Obtains key information needed to walk-in and initiate medical administrative processing of requests and forms.
Work Schedule: 12 hours shifts, days/nights
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
PD#: 593-03065A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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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.
  • You may be required to serve a probationary period.
  • Subject to background/security investigation.
  • Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
  • Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
  • Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.
  • As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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, 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.
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.

Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-5) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of creditable specialized experience includes but is not limited to: assisting in the care and treatment of patients receiving medical care for psychiatric or substance abuse treatment, PTSD, and other behavioral health conditions. Observes, collects data, documents, and reports to the professional team changes in patient behavior, attitude, physical complaints, appearance, changes in the patents' condition that may be related to medications/withdrawal symptoms, sensory distortions, or medical conditions. Ability to perform vital signs, collect and label specimens for the laboratory.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:
Administration and Management
Customer Service
Human Factors
Patient Care
Technical Documentation

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 reoccurring, periods of standing and walking. The duties also require occasional bending and lifting that is 45 pounds or more, reaching, carrying, pushing, stooping, stretching, and similar activities. The incumbent assists in protecting patients' self and other team members from physical harm by hostile and/or confused patients by therapeutically applying physical restraints that may require bending and stretching. The position requires the strength and stamina to perform duties, ability to sit at a desk for long periods of time, look at a computer for long periods of time, walk and stand for 4 hours. Must be able to maintain effective audio, visual discrimination and perception needed for making observations, communicating with others, reading, and writing, and operating office equipment. Must be able to use a telephone to communicate verbally and a keyboard to communicate through written means, to review information and enter/retrieve data, to see and read characters on a computer screen.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer (TJO). Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP), va.gov/EMPLOYEE/docs/The-Fair-Chance-to-Compete-Act.pdf for more information.

Probationary/Trial Period: As a condition of employment for accepting the position of Health Technician with the Department of Veterans Affairs, you will be required to serve a 2-year probationary 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 the following:

  • 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, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. If you do not receive certification for continued employment, you should receive written notice prior to the end of your trial period hat your employment will be terminated and the effective date of such termination.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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.

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 memb

Veterans Health Administration

OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise - "To care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow, and his orphan" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate care to Veterans?

Since 1972, VA Southern Nevada Healthcare System has been improving the health of the men and women who have so proudly served our nation. We consider it our privilege to serve your health care needs in any way we can. Services are available to more than 240,000 veterans living in our catchment area. In addition to our main facility in Las Vegas, we offer services in three community-based outpatient clinics located in Henderson, Pahrump and Laughlin. VA professionals feel good about their careers and their ability to balance work and home life. VA offers generous paid time off and a variety of predictable and flexible scheduling opportunities.

For more information on the Department of Veterans Affairs, go to http://www.vacareers.va.gov/

Agency contact information

Teresa Inch
Phone
702-791-9000 X14898
Email
Teresa.Inch@va.gov
Address
Las Vegas VA Medical Center
6900 North Pecos Road
North Las Vegas, NV 89086
US

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Learn more about what it's like to work at Veterans Health Administration, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

https://www.va.gov/jobs/

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