Clarification from the agency

1st Area of consideration: Current Permanent New Jersey VA HCS employees 2nd Area of consideration: US Citizens

Videos

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

The Advance MSA participates in the daily team meetings where the group reviews individual patient requirements and formulates a plan for delivering the optimal level of care in the appropriate setting. To this end, the incumbent supports the team by finding solutions within his/her scope of responsibility in order to resolve patient needs or expedite delivery of patient care. As a member of the team, the Advance MSA has a collective responsibility with other team members for the ongoing care of all patients served by the team. The incumbent will proactively engage with Veterans through multiple avenues to include MyHealtheVet (secure messaging), VetLink, VAOS, recall system or in person.

Incumbent educates other members of the care team about scheduling protocol, including application of the Electronic Wait List (EWL), NEAR List and MISSION Act timeliness requirements. Incumbent provides information to and receives patients reporting for scheduled and unscheduled visits; processes and directs patients in an expedient and efficient manner. Incumbent is also required to administratively screen all Veterans to determine the nature of medical problems and provide administrative assistance as required.

Duties require frequent data input and processing functions in VISTA/VS GUI for admissions, discharges, follow-up and/or referral appointment, means test, ICB capture and other administrative processes.

The Advanced MSA coordinates with team members to review clinic utilization and ensures that the clinic setup is closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinic, making necessary adjustments as needed. S/he develops/maintains effective and efficient communication with the patient, interdisciplinary team, VA medical centers, and other agencies.

S/he may be tasked with assisting with communications with staff inside and outside the facility; communicating with non-VA medical facilities; processing secure messaging requests from the patient to the team; notifying patients of normal lab results; developing and managing a tracking system for follow up care such as consults, tests, etc.

Other assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: participating in team huddles and team meetings to manage and plan patient care; setting priorities and deadlines, adjusting the flow and sequencing of the work to meet team and patient needs; may work with the team to reinforce the plan of care and self-help solutions and entering appropriate information into the electronic record; monitoring pre-appointment requirements to assure readiness for patient visit/procedure (e.g., X-ray, lab work); managing electronic wait list to verify and validate accuracy and resolve issues; participating and providing input in problem solving on operational issues or procedures in team meetings, performing administrative follow up actions; participating in and independently following up on team huddles by sharing information and collaborating with the medical team to assure continuity of care; evaluating patient information and clinic schedule lists to determine whether patient is vested; educating providers about share patients (those who receive their care at multiple VAs or those who have care in the community) and bringing to the attention of the provider.

AMSA performs other duties as assigned.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 7:30 AM - 4:30 PM
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 21W72-A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized

Conditions of employment

• RESUME REQUIREMENTS - Your resume MUST include the following information:
• Job Title (for each position)
• Description of duties (be as detailed as possible)
• Month and year start/end dates (e.g. June 2018 to April 2020) of employment
• Full-time or part-time status (include average hours worked per week)
• 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.
• 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. 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).

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

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 and Education
  • Experience: Six months experience of clerical, office, customer service, or other administrative work that indicates the ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position; OR
  • Education: One year above High School; OR
  • Experience/Education Combination: Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.

• 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.

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).

Grade Determinations: Advanced Medical Support Assistant GS-6 Grade Level:

Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level, which includes, but not limited to: 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; Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients; 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; and Skill in customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns, and refer to the appropriate staff, as necessary, to ensure a satisfactory resolution.

AND

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below:

• 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.
• Ability to independently set priorities and organize work to meet deadlines, ensuring compliance with established processes, policies, and regulations.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology due to the technical nature of language utilized by clinicians.

Preferred Experience: Some college and past clerical experience preferred.

Reference: VA Handbook 5005/117, Part II, Appendix G45, Dated 8/1/2019. For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-679-06. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is a GS-06.

Physical Requirements: VA Directive and Handbook 5019.Work is partially sedentary, with frequent walking, standing, bending. carrying of light items such as papers and books, or small parts. Some slight physical effort may be required. Incumbent may be susceptible to eyestrain from working long hours on the computer.

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.