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***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION***

DESIGNATED DRUG-TESTING POSITION: Applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Applicants will not be appointed to the position if a verified positive drug test result is received.

Major duties and responsibilities include but not limited to:

• Performing phlebotomy using Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidance, confirming patient identity, applying correct order of draw, and completing safe venipuncture on inpatients and outpatients, including those requiring specialized or difficult collections
• Processing collection lists by managing ward, immediate (STAT), and timed draws, reviewing uncollected tests, and resolving outstanding specimen requests to maintain timely clinical workflow
• Verifying patient identity and labeling specimens with complete demographic and collection information to support safety, traceability, and accurate laboratory testing
• Maintaining infection-control and safety compliance by using standard precautions, wearing protective equipment, and following procedural steps to ensure safe blood collection
• Performing specialized collections by instructing patients on proper sterile urine collection, 24-hour urine procedures, stool studies, cultures, and other diagnostic test requirements
• Providing phlebotomy training by educating staff and students on practical techniques, safe specimen collection, workflow processes, and laboratory best practices
• Responding to patient emergencies by recognizing adverse reactions, performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation or first aid, and reporting clinical changes during or after blood collection
• Delivering age-appropriate care by adapting collection techniques, communication, and safety measures for young adult, adult, and geriatric patients
• Investigating specimen errors by documenting labeling or processing issues and completing incident reports to maintain quality and regulatory compliance
• Shipping diagnostic specimens by packaging and labeling materials according to federal transportation and International Air Transport Association hazardous-materials regulations
• Collecting specialized samples such as therapeutic phlebotomy under American Association of Blood Banks guidance and employee drug tests under the Federal Employee Drug Testing Program
• Handling and prioritizing specimens by maintaining required temperatures or light protection and delivering samples appropriately across laboratory departments
• Operating laboratory information systems by accessing orders, printing labels, troubleshooting discrepancies, performing Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments-waived tests, documenting quality data, and training personnel in computer workflows
• Providing communication and administrative support by educating patients, assisting with check-in, addressing order issues, answering calls, providing customer service, performing clerical duties, and completing required training

Work Schedule: Monday to Friday; 07:30 a.m. to 04:00 p.m. OR 09:30 a.m. to 06:00 p.m.
Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• 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)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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 probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

Minimum Requirement: The following are minimum requirements for appointment as a Medical Technician in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). One of the following minimum requirement criteria must be met to be qualified for this position.

• Specialized Experience (GS-04): You must have at least six (6) months of general experience, and six (6) months of specialized experience that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. General Experience is: (1) Any type of work that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work of the position, or (2) experience that provided a familiarity with the subject matter or processes of the broad subject area of the occupation. Specialized experience is: (a) Technical medical laboratory support work such as performing laboratory tests and examinations (chemical, microbiologic, hematologic and blood banking) and preparing reports of findings or (b) technical support work in a closely related field, e.g., biological laboratory technician work that required application of the methods and techniques for the position to be filled. (CLEAR DETAILS OF EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: Your resume must show complete information for each job entry, such as beginning and ending dates of employment, duties performed, and/or total hours worked per week.) OR,
• Education (GS-04): Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successful completion of (a) an associate-degree course of study of which the 2nd year of the 2-year program included successful completion of a training course of approximately a year's duration in a certified laboratory assistant school approved by a nationally recognized accrediting agency; (b) 1 year of study that included 6 semester hours in chemistry and/or the biological sciences, plus successful completion of the training course (i.e., a full-time training course of approximately a year's duration in a medical or clinical laboratory assistant [or technician] school that included instruction in chemistry, hematology, blood banking, and microbiology [including serology] and that, in addition, included supervised laboratory practice incident to the diagnostic process and the treatment of patients); or (c) 2 years of study that included at least 12 semester hours of chemistry and/or biological science course work that must have been directly related to the specialization of the position to be filled. NOTE: One year of full-time undergraduate study is defined as 30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours, or the equivalent in a college or university or at least 20 hours of classroom instruction per week for approximately 36 weeks in a business or technical school. (UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED: If you do not submit your transcript, your application may not be reviewed.) OR,
• Combination (GS-04): Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education, as described above. (UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED: If you do not submit your transcript, your application may not be reviewed.)

AND

ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position.

AND

SELECTIVE PLACEMENT FACTOR: This position includes a Selective Placement Factor (skill, knowledge, ability, or other worker characteristic basic to - and essential for - satisfactory performance of the job). Selective Placement Factors are a prerequisite to appointment and represent minimum requirement for a position. Applicants who do not meet it are ineligible for further consideration.

• The Selective Placement Factor for this position is: Experience performing phlebotomy/blood draws on human patients.

You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position:

• Computer Skills
• Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)
• Patient Care
• Quality Assurance
• Specimen Collection

IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such 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; religious; 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.

Physical Requirements: The work requires manual dexterity and exceptional hand/eye coordination, some physical exertion, such as regular and recurring walking, reaching, bending, and to stand for several consecutive hours during the collection and of specimens. Work is performed at a fast pace. In many situations the duration of the activity (such as most of a workday) contributes to the arduous nature of the job. Position requires occasional lifting of reagent/supply containers weighing up to 20 pounds.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

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 WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

Your responses to the assessment questionnaire will be reviewed along with the information provided in your resume and supporting documentation to determine if you are qualified for the position. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered and/or you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

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.

Candidates who apply under All U.S. Citizens announcements will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. Qualified candidates will be assigned to a quality category. The categories are defined as follows:

• Best qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position;
• Highly qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the requirements of the job;
• Well qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in some, but not all, of the requirements of the job; and
• Qualified - applicants possessing experience and/or education that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors.

Application of Veterans' Preference: Category rating and selection procedures place those with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Preference eligible applicants that meet the eligibility and qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category (except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher).

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.