Health Technician (Optometry)

US Department of Veterans Affairs; Charlotte (NC); On-site; USD 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs seeks an Optometry Health Technician at the South Charlotte Healthcare Center in Charlotte, NC, with duty at the Charlotte Health Care Center and rotation to the Charlotte CBOC.

The incumbent supports eyecare services and patient treatment under the supervision of optometrists. Duties include conducting visual acuity tests, assisting with ophthalmic procedures, applying eye drops, measuring ocular parameters, and educating patients on eye health and vision

Qualifications

• Two years of college health-related coursework or equivalent.
• Associate degree or course in health technician/optometry.
• Experience with ophthalmic instrumentation is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Perform visual acuity testing and related measurements.
• Assist the eye care provider with ophthalmic procedures.
• Administer eye drops under supervision and document results.
• Educate patients on eye health and vision care.

Skills

Visual acuity testing

Eye measurements

Ophthalmic assistance

Patient education

Education

Two years college health

Associate degree in health tech

Tools

Lensometer knowledge

Keratometer use

Autorefractometer use

Job description

This position is located at the South Charlotte Healthcare Center, Optometry Service, Charlotte, NC with duty at the Charlotte Health Care Center, Charlotte, NC, with rotation to the Charlotte CBOC, Charlotte, NC.

The incumbent provides varied range of significant patient-related duties in support of the eyecare, and treatment given to patients in Optometry Service.

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. One year of experience as a health technician or assistant in the health care field demonstrating the applicant's ability to perform the work or by demonstrating a basic understanding of work in the health care field; OR
  • Education. Successful completion of two academic years above high school with a minimum of 12 semester hours related to health technician/assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant or associate degree, or completion of an independent study course in an optometry related technician or assistant field; OR
  • Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of experience and education are qualifying. Examples are listed below:
    • Six months of experience comparable to the next lower level which demonstrates the knowledge of optometry assistant theory and practices and general understanding of the health technician/assistant duties and one year above high school with a minimum of six semester hours of health technician/assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant related courses.
    • Successful completion of a course for health care technicians or assistants, hospital corpsmen, medical service specialists, or hospital training in a program given by the U.S. Armed Forces, the U.S. Maritime Service, or the U.S. Public Health Service, may be substituted on a month-for-month basis.
• English Language Proficiency: Health Technician (Optometry) candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
• Creditable Experience: To be creditable, the experience must have required the use of knowledge, skills and abilities associated with current health technician/assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant practice. Experience satisfying this requirement may be paid or non-paid employment as a health technician/assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant in the health care field.
• Quality of Experience. Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to health technician/assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant experience at the next lower grade level of the position being filled. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time.
• Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience is creditable according to its relationship to a full-time workweek. For example, an individual employed 20 hours per week, or on a half time basis, would receive one full-time work week of credit for each two weeks of service.

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

• Experience: One year of experience comparable to the next lower level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities related to the duties of the position to be filled.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
  • Ability to determine preliminary objective estimate and/or refinement of the optical status of the eye, not to include the patient's final subjective refraction.
  • Ability to triage and manage eyeglasses issues (e.g., measurement of vertex distance, base curve, prism correction, center thickness, slab off, Fresnel prism, decentration, etc.).
  • Ability to perform accurate assessment of accommodation, near point of convergence and ocular alignment (far and near).
  • Ability to assist the eye care provider (optometrist or ophthalmologist) with ophthalmic procedures.
  • Ability to assist with obtaining accurate ocular cultures and smears.
  • Knowledge and ability to provide advanced patient education for eye health and/or vision conditions.
• Assignment: Employee at this grade level serves as a full performance level health technician (optometry). The technicians perform duties such as measuring and recording visual acuity (with use of pinhole testing as indicated), obtaining accurate potential acuity meter, laser interferometry, contrast sensitivity or other specialized visual acuity measurements. The technicians also evaluate pupillary light responses and measure pupil size, determine the presence or absence of fusion and perform stereoacuity measurements. The health technicians (optometry) perform Amsler grid testing, administer eye drops under the supervision of an eye care provider (optometrist or ophthalmologist), perform basic tonometry (e.g., non-contact, Goldmann, Tono-Pen) and estimate the anterior chamber depth with a penlight or slit lamp biomicroscope. The technicians are skilled in properly reading a basic spectacle prescription using an automated or manual lensometer, obtaining accurate autorefractometry and keratometry measurements, performing confrontation and standard automated visual field testing and administering and scoring basic color vision tests (e.g., pseudoischromatic plates, Farnsworth D-15). The technicians are also adept at measuring and recording corneal thickness by pachymetry as well as performance of advanced corneal measurements, exophthalmometry, tear testing and ocular imaging (e.g., stereo fundus, basic slit lamp biomicroscopy, intraocular lens master measurements, ocular ultrasonography, posterior segment optical coherence tomography, fundus autofluorescence and/or ocular angiography).

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-7.

Physical Requirements

See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.