Clarification from the agency

NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. This position is open only to current employees within Legacy VISN 6/HSA 2.1.

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VA Careers - Medical Support Assistant: https://youtube.com/embed/EE9c4XkaELo

The Advanced MSA provides specialized and expert administrative patient support while working collaboratively in an inter-professional coordinated care delivery model. Work involves specialized administrative judgment and the flexible use of a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or care in the community resources. Works collaboratively with VISN programs, services, and interprofessional coordinated care team members to provide access to care and meet the needs of Veterans via various available contact modalities to include but not limited to telephone calls, secure messaging, chat, text messaging and video.

The AMSA is responsible for answering telephones, secure messages and chat messages, greeting patients, relaying messages to appropriate staff inside or outside of the VISN CCC, scheduling appointments, interpreting and verifying provider orders in accordance with VHA national scheduling
guidelines. Recommends changes to existing clinic procedures based on current administrative guidelines. Expertise in utilizing numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics involved in an interprofessional coordinated care delivery model. AMSAs at this level develop and/or maintain effective and efficient communication with the patient, interprofessional care delivery teams, VA medical centers, and other agencies; communicate with non-VA medical facilities.

Duties of the AMSA include but are not limited to:

• Scheduling, canceling, re-scheduling patient appointments and/or consults; entering no-show information.
• Monitoring appointment requests from multiple electronic sources.
• Gathering and obtaining medical information from patients.
• Processing medication refill requests.
• Reviewing electronic health record, obtaining medical records, sending and receiving fax.
• Participate in huddles with other MSAs and/or VISN CCC staff to determine the daily needs of the VISN CCC.
• Monitoring outpatient appointments in areas of responsibility; and verifying and updating demographics when contacted by patients. Manages patient systems to verify and validate accuracy and resolve issues.
• Evaluates patient information and clinic schedule lists to determine whether the patient requires an immediate appointment
• Informs interprofessional team members about shared patients (i.e.)., those who receive their care at multiple VA centers or those who receive care in the community.
• Provides information and resolution to Veterans' requests within scope, uses administrative judgement to escalate symptomatic concerns to clinicians within the VISN CCC or directs the contact to the appropriate discipline within the CCC or department for resolution.
• Screens incoming contacts and independently routes the contacts to the appropriate area for resolution.
• Uses advanced knowledge of health care process as it relates to access of care to ensure Veteran appointment scheduling is efficient, operational and prioritized to maintain Veteran flow and clinic readiness.
• Utilizes various software, hardware system products, and data portals to transfer and capture information electronically for the support of the daily operation of the unit.
• Operates within the various contact modalities to receive and respond to incoming and outgoing contacts using computerized interfaces and telecommunications hardware and software.
• Provides accurate details of organizational information to Veterans regarding the different services the VA offers.
• Provides high-quality customer service to Veterans and their families/caregivers.
• Communicates tactfully and effectively to challenging customers who may be threatening, abusive, or distraught.
• Resolves Veteran complaints as appropriate.
• Performs duties as assigned to ensure efficient and effective operations.
• Other related duties may be assigned.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Work Schedule: 24/7 hour Call Center (Weekends, Holidays, Evenings, and Nights); Rotating tours which will be determined by the Supervisor.
Remote: This is a remote position. This position is currently exempt from the Return to Office requirements. Remote exempted positions are reviewed annually and do not imply permanent remote work status.
Functional Statement #: 000000

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the 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.
• 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: Citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3.g.).
• Experience and Education:
  • 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.
• English Language Proficiency. MSAs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3.j.
• Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements.
• Driver's license required.

Grandfathering Provision: All MSAs employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series, and grade held, which are a part of the basic requirements of the occupation.
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).

IN ADDITION TO MEETING THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS LISTED ABOVE, YOU MUST MEET THE GRADE REQUIREMENTS AT THE GS-6 LEVEL TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION.

GS-06 Specialized Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level. This will include: Scheduling, canceling, re-scheduling patient appointments and/or consults; entering no-show information; monitoring appointment requests from multiple electronic sources; participating in huddles with other MSAs and/or clinic staff to determine the daily needs of the clinic; monitoring both inpatient and outpatient appointments; verifying and updating demographics and insurance information when patients check-in for appointments; coordinates administrative functions relating to emergency and non-emergency transfers to other hospitals, and determines appointment type based on the patient's eligibility.

In addition, you must have experience which demonstrates the following knowledge, skills and abilities:

• (a) Advanced knowledge of the technical health care process (including, but not limited to, scheduling across interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community models and patient health care portals) as it relates to access to care.
• (b) Advanced knowledge of policies and procedures associated with interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community operational activities that affect patient flow, and patient support care administrative functions to include, but not limited to appointment cycles, outside patient referrals, follow-up care, overbooking, provider availability, etc.
• (c) Advanced knowledge of medical terminology due to the technical nature of language utilized by clinicians.
• (d) Ability to collaborate and communicate with a wide range of medical clinicians across multiple disciplines (e.g., medical doctors, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, clinical pharmacists, and nursing staff) to accomplish team goal setting to ensure medical care to patients is met.
• (e) Ability to independently set priorities and organize work to meet deadlines, ensuring compliance with established processes, policies, and regulations.
• (f) Ability to communicate tactfully and effectively, electronically, by phone, in person, and in writing, with internal and external customers. This may include preparing reports in various formats and presenting data to various organizational levels, as well as resolving patient concerns.

Preferred Experience: Scheduling Experience Preferred.

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

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS06.

Physical Requirements: Position requires visual acuity, adequate auditory perception, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. Position requires potentially extended periods of sitting. The position requires some bending and carrying of items. 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 meet Employee Health mandates 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.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

• Customer Service
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Reading Comprehension
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Teamwork

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.