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Medical Records Administrator (Chief CHIM)

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Chalmers P. Wylie Ambulatory Care Center
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is located in the Health Information Management (HIM) Section of the Patient Business Service at the Central Ohio VA Healthcare System. This assignment serves as the Chief of Health Information Management (CHIM), which is the highest-level professional position at the facility, with responsibility for the management and direction of the health information management program.

Overview

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Open & closing dates
06/17/2025 to 06/30/2025
Salary
$92,475 to - $120,222 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 12
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Columbus, OH
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy. Ad-hoc
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
None
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Noncritical-Sensitive (NCS)/Moderate Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
CBSR-12748797-25-LL
Control number
838988700

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

All qualified candidates encouraged to apply. Open to all US Citizens. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens.

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Duties

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Major duties include, but are not limited to:

  • Provide technical advice, planning, and evaluation regarding health information management issues that impact the overall program on a regular and recurring basis.
  • Establish policies, procedures, responsibilities, and requirements for HIM-related matters, such as health record documentation, coding and clinical documentation improvement, release of information, file room/scanning, records management, transcription, and medical speech recognition, as well as the overall management of health information and Veterans health records.
  • Ensure the facility is in compliance with applicable standards by completing HIM audits, developing healthcare data reports, and statistical information, for timely and accurate reporting.
  • Responsible for providing technical guidance on health information issues such as documentation requirements, liability issues, advance directives, informed consent, release of information, transcription/speech recognition, health information exchange, etc.
  • Completes internal quality assurance reviews to ensure employee performance and that work meets quality and quantity standards.
  • Conducts training programs in various areas health information management, such as medical terminology, health record documentation, release of information, medico-legal matters, speech recognition/transcription, scanning, medical coding, clinical documentation improvement, and health information exchange.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm
Telework: Ad-hoc
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 92918-0
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.
  • 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.
  • English Language Proficiency. MRAs must be proficient in spoken and written English. See 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f)
  • Education or Experience:
    • Experience. Three years of [creditable] experience in the field of medical records that included the preparation, maintenance, and management of [health] records and health information systems [demonstrating a knowledge of medical terminology,] medical records [procedures, medical coding, or medical, administrative, and legal requirements of health care delivery] systems.
      OR,
      Education. [Successful completion of a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university [recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, with a major field of study in health information management, or a related degree with a minimum of 24 semester hours in health information management or health information technology.]
      OR,
      Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of [creditable] experience and education that equals 100 percent may be used to meet basic requirements. [For example, two years above high school from an accredited college or university, with 12 semester hours in health information technology/health information management, plus one year and six months of creditable experience that included the preparation, maintenance, and management of health records and health information systems meets an equivalent combination.
  • Certifications: Persons hired or reassigned to this position must meet one of the following:
  • Coding Certification through AHIMA or AAPC*
  • HIM Certification through AHIMA **
  • Health Data Analyst Certification through AHIMA***
    • NOTE. HIMs Certification is required for all positions above the full performance level.
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: Medical Records Administrator (Chief( CHIM) GS-12

Assignments. This assignment serves as the CHIM, which is the highest-level professional position at the facility, with responsibility for the management and direction of the health information management program. CHIMs provide technical advice, planning, and evaluation regarding health information management issues that impact the overall program on a regular and recurring basis. The CHIM establishes policies, procedures, responsibilities, and requirements for HIM-related matters, such as health record documentation, coding and clinical documentation improvement, release of information, file room/scanning, records management, transcription and medical speech recognition, as well as the overall management of health information and Veterans health records. They effectively communicate and negotiate with staff at all levels of the organization. The CHIM communicates with medical center staff and external organizations to promote compliance with regulations, guidelines, policies, and procedures to meet the goal of excellent patient care. They ensure quality and efficiency for all areas and processes of the HIM department. They develop and implement HIM departmental short-term and long-term budgets, to include contracts, equipment, space, training, and staffing plans.

In addition to the basic requirements for employment listed above, the following criteria must be met:

Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level that demonstrates the KSAs described at that level.

AND

Certification. Employees at this level must have a HIM Certification.
  • Note. See paragraph 2d of this appendix for detailed definitions of HIM certification.
AND

You must also demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA's):
  • Ability to determine and evaluate compliance with legal, ethical, and regulatory guidelines and accrediting bodies, as they apply to health information management.
  • Skill in evaluating, developing and implementing new policies, procedures, and programs.
  • Ability to provide program oversight, including advisory and technical expertise on a range of health information management practices and guidelines to staff at various levels.
  • Ability to develop and conduct training on health information management programs, policies, procedures, and performance improvement activities.
  • Ability to effectively procure and manage HIM resources i.e. space, staffing, education, budget, etc.
  • Ability to provide the full range of supervisory duties to include assignment of work; completing performance evaluations; selection of staff; and recommendation of awards, advancements, and disciplinary actions.
  • Customer service skills necessary to effectively communicate (written and verbal) and interact with all levels of hospital personnel, physicians, patients, and outside agencies.
  • Ability to deal effectively with sensitive and/or complex situations.
Preferred Experience: Experience in policies and procedures pertaining to health record documentation, coding and clinical documentation improvement, release of information, file room/scanning, records management, transcription, and medical speech recognition. Experience with legal and regulatory guidelines that apply to health information. Experience with VHA policies and procedure relating to Health Information Management Program.

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-12.

Physical Requirements: The work is mostly sedentary, sitting at a computer for sustained periods of concentration. There will be some walking, standing, bending, and carrying of relatively light objects. The position may also require stooping, reaching, lifting, pulling and other moderate exertion or strain. The incumbent may occasionally have to walk some distance to meetings. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

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

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

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. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

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.

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