Advanced Medical Support Assistant

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

The Advanced Medical Support Assistant (AMSA) in the Compensation and Pension section within Integrated Primary Care provides essential administrative and patient support, coordinating and scheduling appointments, handling patient information, and communicating with Veterans.

The AMSA works with clinical and administrative staff to ensure timely access to care and efficient service delivery, including triage calls and data entry while maintaining confidentiality.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent required.
• English language proficiency in speaking and writing.
• U.S. citizenship/eligibility for federal employment.
• One year of experience at GS-5 level or equivalent preferred.

Responsibilities

• Schedule outpatient clinic appointments using VistA and other scheduling tools.
• Coordinate and prioritize appointments per scheduling rules and clinic needs.
• Communicate with Veterans, families, and staff about appointments and services.
• Enter and maintain patient information in clinical systems and ensure confidentiality.

Skills

Scheduling

Medical terminology

Patient communication

Interdisciplinary coordination

Administrative coordination

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Tools

VistA

Job description

Summary

This position serves as an Advanced Medical Support Assistant (AMSA) for the Compensation and Pension section within Integrated Primary Care. The incumbent provides essential administrative and patient support - including coordinating and scheduling appointments - communicating with Veterans - managing patient information - and supporting clinic operations. The AMSA works collaboratively with clinical and administrative staff to ensure timely access to care and efficient delivery of services.

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
• 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
• Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C.
• 7403(f)
• 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: GS-6 Medical Support Assistant (Advanced): One year of experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level
• This experience includes: 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 in areas of responsibility
• 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 VA facilities or private hospitals and determines appointment type based on the patient's eligibility status
• In addition - candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: 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
• 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
• 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-06
• Physical Requirements: The work is mostly sedentary - although some slight physical effort will be required using computers/phones
• there may be some light lifting/carrying of files/documents
• and walking throughout the service/facility for meetings - etc.

Duties

• VA Careers - Medical Support Assistant: https://youtube.com/embed/EE9c4XkaELo Major duties include: Schedules outpatient clinic appointments using Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture (VistA) and other scheduling applications
• Coordinates and prioritizes appointments in accordance with nationally established scheduling business rules - policies - and procedures
• Schedules clinic visits - consultations - referrals - and Community Care appointments
• Serves as a patient scheduling coordinator and determines appropriate scheduling protocols based on patient and clinic needs
• Communicates with Veterans - families - clinical staff - affiliated staff - and external customers regarding appointments and healthcare services
• Provides telephone assistance - triages incoming calls - and routes patients and inquiries to the appropriate staff or service
• Receives and checks in patients and assists with directing patients to appropriate clinic locations
• Enters and maintains patient information - including data within the Environmental Registry and other applicable systems
• Works collaboratively within an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model to support efficient clinic operations and access to care
• Serves as a resource regarding clinic processes - regulations - policies - and procedures
• Uses advanced knowledge of medical terminology - patient flow - healthcare processes - and clinic operations to resolve administrative issues
• Maintains confidentiality and safeguards sensitive patient information in accordance with the Privacy Act - Federal regulations - VA policy - and VHA requirements
• Provides courteous - tactful - and respectful customer service while appropriately resolving concerns and conflicts involving Veterans - families - visitors - and staff
• Work Schedule: 8:00 am -4:30 pm Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 02374F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized