Clarification from the agency

This position is open to current permanent Department of Veterans Affairs employees, current permanent Federal Employees of other agencies, and 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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The Medical Support Assistant position performs support work relating to the care and treatment given to patients in inpatient units, outpatient clinics, patient scheduling call centers, Care in the Community Support Staff (CitC), and ancillary support services. This series includes work that requires practical knowledge of computerized data entry, information processing systems and software related to patient care, the health care system's organization and services, basic rules and regulations governing visitors and patient treatment, knowledge of standard procedures, utilizing medical records, and medical terminology.

Duties include but are not limited to:

• Screens patients, visitors and caregivers at the Medical Center.
• Collects and updates insurance information from Veterans, family members and other eligible patients.
• Prepare correspondence and memos as needed.
• Screens/receive phone calls in a courteous and timely manner, determine the nature of request and provide the information desired using privacy rules and established clinic processes.
• Records patient messages via email or CPRS schedulers administrative note to provider/nurse/Team and understands provider requests pertaining to follow up medical care in internal or external clinics via use of Return to Clinic orders
• Provides customer service to all Veterans; identifying concerns to forward to appropriate clinic/administrative staff to ensure satisfactory resolution.
• Ensure data is entered into VISTA accurately and scans documents into VISTA Imaging within 24 hours of entering the data into VISTA if applicable.
• Promotes Veteran registration for and utilization of My Healthy Vet (MHV)
• Stocks basic office supplies for the clinical area.
• Enters Veterans seeking emergent/urgent care, scheduling appointments accurately in accordance with VHA National Scheduling guidelines.
• Utilizes call lists and telephones Veterans to pre-register them before their scheduled visits. Incumbent updates all patient demographics.
• Communicates and interacts with patients in a manner which is appropriate to cognitive, emotional, and chronological maturation needs of the adult and/or geriatric patient.
• Assures that all appropriate VA forms are used correctly, and regulations followed.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: INTERMITTENT - 8:00am-4:30pm
Work Location: This position will be a float MSA position and the incumbent will need to go to Montrose VAMC and Castle Point VAMC as needed.
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not authorized.
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized.
Telework: Not available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 21R94-A
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized
PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO):

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• 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 identification 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

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.
• Experience. None.
• Education. High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education.
• Licensure/Certification/Registration. None.
• English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

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).

Creditable Experience:

• Knowledge of MSA Practices. To be creditable, the experience must have demonstrated the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) associated with current MSA responsibilities or an equivalent administrative patient support role in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting. Experience satisfying this requirement may be paid/non-paid employment as an MSA or an equivalent position in a non-VA hospital or clinic setting.
• Quality of Experience. Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to MSA experience or equivalent administrative clinical support role in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting at the next lower grade level. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty), and a range of varieties as described in this standard, at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time.

Grade Determinations: The following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates:

Medical Support Assistant, GS-03:

• Experience or Education: None beyond the basic requirements.

Medical Support Assistant, GS-04:

• Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade.; OR
• Education. One year of education above high school. AND,
• Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
  • Knowledge of basic medical terminology to assist in the provision of care to patients.
  • Skill in recording patient messages and understanding physician requests pertaining to follow-up medical care in internal or external clinics.
  • Ability to meet, communicate, and interact with individuals from varying backgrounds and other health care team members in a courteous and helpful manner in order to facilitate medical care for patients.
  • Ability to use, and navigate between, various types of office automation equipment and software (i.e., computer systems, web based scheduling programs; insurance collection system; scanning software, multiple line phone systems; electronic faxing programs) to support patient care.

Medical Support Assistant, GS-05:

• Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade; OR
• Education. Two years of education above high school. AND,
• Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
  • Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients.
  • Skill in customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns, and refer to the appropriate staff, as necessary, to ensure a satisfactory resolution.
  • Ability to operate computerized programs and systems in order to enter, modify, and retrieve sensitive medical and patient identifying information (PII) into or from electronic health records, scheduling systems, and/or reports.
  • Ability to schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting.
  • Ability to work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work.
  • Ability to communicate effectively and professionally in person, electronically, and/or by telephone, with internal and external customers.

Preferred Experience: One year of customer service experience. Ability to use computer equipment.

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-05. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-03 to GS-05.

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Area of consideration: Eligible Applications will be reviewed and referred in the following order:
1. Current permanent employees of the VA Hudson Valley HCS
2. All other VA employees
3. All other applicants.

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.