Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to all US Citizens. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

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The Advanced Medical Support Assistant provides a wide range of essential management and administrative support for the Dental Service. These activities include administrative patient management, scheduling, Advanced Clinic Access/Systems Redesign projects, data collection & analysis for the Dental Service clinic workload, performance improvement programs, and Community Care dental programs. The employee provides administrative and clerical support to the Chief, Administrative Officer, and all dental staff and will assist with other administrative duties as assigned.

Advanced Medical Support Assistant duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Coordinates and maintains overall patient flow of Dental Clinic Teams. Receives patients and visitors in person or telephonically. Records and relays messages and/or redirects calls as necessary.
• Schedules appointments and provides information regarding clinic and hospital policies, procedures and locations to patients, family members, staff, etc.
• Designs, collects and follows Advanced Clinic Access/System Redesign/Continuous Quality Improvement projects from clinical and administrative activities and participates in identifying areas for which continued or new monitoring is needed as well as monitors that no longer require attention.
• The Medical Support Assistant serves as Dental Service Point of Contact of dental fee basis programs. Participates in referrals for Community Care. Liaises between private fee dentists, patients, Community Care claims examiners and Chief, Dental Service to ensure proper documentation is completed and plans are approved.
• The position involves customer service, patient screening, and other duties as assigned for the proper and timely treatment of patients.
• Education Liaison for Dental Service: Keeps staff informed of the status of their education requirements. Tracks performed education
  by all dental staff.
• Patient Advocate Liaison: The Dental Medical Support Assistant assists in handling patient complaints and inquiries. Identifies cases which require a higher level of input and refers to appropriate person.
• Assists staff with hardware and software computer support needs and interacts with Service ADPAC.
• The Dental Medical Support Assistant utilizes word processing, spreadsheet and PowerPoint functions of the personal computer, prepares letter and memorandum correspondence; acts as Timekeeper; routes mail; screens telephone calls and answers all but those which require the Chief's attention; takes minutes of staff meetings; independently collects and collates necessary data and completes and appropriately routes forms for equipment purchase, employee recruitment, employee travel, personnel action and irregular tour of duty. Inputs and tracks work order requests.
• Maintains sufficient office supplies and ensures functioning office equipment. Conducts annual inventory of office, dental and lab equipment.

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 dentification 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.

• 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.

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.
• 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
• 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. 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.
• Certification: None required.
• Grandfathering Provision: 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).
• Foreign Education: To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must have been submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs.
• Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

Assignment. The Advanced Medical Support Assistant (MSA's) must demonstrate technical competency in the use of the VistA and CPRS systems and be able to train others in its use. The Advanced MSA is responsible for accurate appointment management and the coordination of all administrative information between the professional staff and the patient. This includes updating and verifying demographic information, scheduling appointments, collecting insurance information, data entry, administratively managing consultation requests and the electronic waiting list, and notifying the patient of his/her scheduled appointment. He/she must abide by federal privacy and confidentiality regulations and exhibit ethical conduct all times. Employee must complete and adhere to necessary annual VHA training requirements. He/she has a key role in the VHA Network Performance Measures for Revenue, Customer Service, Access to Care, and overall quality of healthcare delivery. Develop and/or maintain effective and efficient communication with the patient, interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model teams, VA medical centers, and other agencies. 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 and dental terminology due to the technical nature of language utilized by clinicians.

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.

For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document.