Medical Support Assistant

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Fort Bliss (TX); On-site; USD 36,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid Time Off

Parental Leave

Job summary

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs invites applications for a Medical Support Assistant in the El Paso VA Health Care System, Community Care Service, Ft. Bliss, Texas.

The MSA handles patient access, consults, and scheduling, contributing to efficient patient care and CCS workflows. This role emphasizes clerical support, data accuracy, and strong communication with patients and clinical staff in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• Education and KSAs required to communicate clearly with patients and staff.
• Experience with clinic scheduling and patient data is preferred.
• Ability to use office automation and medical software to support patient care.

Responsibilities

• Schedule appointments and manage patient flow in CCS.
• Update patient demographics and insurance information accurately.
• Assist with front desk duties and patient communications.
• Coordinate with clinical staff to process scheduling and orders.

Skills

Medical terminology

Customer service

Communication

Typing 50 WPM

Teamwork

Education

High school diploma or GED

Tools

VistA

CPRS

Insurance Capture Buffer (ICB)

Job description

Summary

The position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs - Veteran Health Administration (VHA) - El Paso VA Health Care System (EPVAHCS) - Community Care Service (CCS) - in Ft. Bliss - Texas. The Incumbent serves as a Medical Support Assistant (MSA) in CCS and will be involved in administrative aspects of patient access - consults and scheduling for the service. Their work has a direct effect on patient care - the patient flow - and processes within CCS.

Summary

The position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs - Veteran Health Administration (VHA) - El Paso VA Health Care System (EPVAHCS) - Community Care Service (CCS) - in Ft. Bliss - Texas. The Incumbent serves as a Medical Support Assistant (MSA) in CCS and will be involved in administrative aspects of patient access - consults and scheduling for the service. Their work has a direct effect on patient care - the patient flow - and processes within CCS.

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
• Experience
• No experience required
• Education
• High school diploma - General Education Development equivalency certificate - or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education
• 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
• Licensure/Certification/Registration
• None Physical Requirements
• See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 - Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements
• See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 - Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements
• 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-3: None beyond the basic requirements
• GS-4: Experience: One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-3)
• Experience includes - but is not limited to: applying general rules and policies relating to clinic functions - staff - and automated data processing methods in support of treatment to patients
• utilize a variety of patient data systems in scheduling patients for treatment and annotates patient records
• perform front desk duties - receives telephone call - and visitors to the MSA unit
• make and cancel appointments - review patient records for necessary information - and review patient demographics and insurance verification
• consult with clinic staff when processing physician scheduling and administrative orders.
• OR - Education: One year of education above high school
• (Transcript Required) Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: Knowledge of basic medical terminology to assist in the provision of care to patients
• Skill in recording patient messages and understanding physician requests pertaining to follow-up medical care in internal or external clinics
• Ability to meet - communicate - and interact with individuals from varying backgrounds and other health care team members in a courteous and helpful manner in order to facilitate medical care for patients
• Ability to use - and navigate between - various types of office automation equipment and software (i.e
• computer systems - web based scheduling programs
• insurance collection system
• scanning software - multiple line phone systems
• electronic faxing programs) to support patient care
• GS-5: Experience: One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-4)
• Experience includes - but is not limited to: scheduling and rescheduling patients for treatment
• interviewing patients for appointments
• referring patients to other medical specialty clinics
• providing information to patients necessary to resolve complaints
• interacting with both internal and external customers
• reviewing and documenting medical outpatient and inpatient electronic health records - as well as administrative records
• verifying third party insurance and updating information in the Insurance Capture Buffer (ICB) system
• obtaining medical information from patients
• coordinating information and actions related to patient care and services
• and scheduling appointments in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines.
• OR - Education: Two years of education above high school
• (Transcript Required) Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities
• Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients
• Skill in customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns - and refer to the appropriate staff - as necessary - to ensure a satisfactory resolution
• Ability to operate computerized programs and systems in order to enter - modify - and retrieve sensitive medical and patient identifying information (PII) into or from electronic health records - scheduling systems - and/or reports
• Ability to schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting
• Ability to work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work
• Ability to communicate effectively and professionally in person - electronically - and/or by telephone - with internal and external customers
• Preferred Experience: Experience in customer service and knowledge of medical terminology Ability to type 50 WPM Ability to work in a team environment Experience in Microsoft Word and Excel 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-05
• The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-03 to GS-05
• Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary
• Some work may require movement between offices - hospitals - warehouses - and similar areas for meetings and to conduct work
• Work may also require walking/standing - in conjunctions with travel to and attendance at meetings and/or conferences away from the work site
• Incumbent may carry and lift light items weighing less than 15 pounds.

Duties

• VA Careers - Medical Support Assistant: https://youtube.com/embed/EE9c4XkaELo Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional The MSA is responsible for scheduling appointments - including interpreting - and verifying provider orders in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines
• Assignments at this level include - but are not limited to: interacting with both internal and external customers over the phone and in person - establishing and maintaining medic.al charts as well as administrative records - scheduling - canceling - re- scheduling patient's appointments and/or consults
• entering no-show information
• preparing for clinic visits
• monitoring both inpatient and outpatient appointments for areas of responsibility
• ensuring encounter forms are completed in order to obtain appropriate workload credit
• verifying and updating demographics and insurance information
• obtaining medical information from patients
• coordinating information and actions related to patient care and services
• The MSA refers all questions requiring immediate attention to appropriate health care team member
• Routinely communicates with physicians - case managers - and other allied health care professional staff using sound interpersonal skills and is constantly aware of the sensitive information that is being communicated
• The work includes various duties involving different and unrelated processes and methods
• The scope of this work is frequently accomplished under strict deadlines due to time constraints and patient volumes
• The incumbent will interface with personal computer (PC) applications as well as numerous VistA and Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS) applications
• The MSA will participate in huddles with other MSAs and/or clinical staff to determine the daily needs of the service
• Work Schedule: Monday - Friday
• 8:00am - 4:45pm Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay - a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade)
• Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave - 13 days of sick leave - 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual - based on prior [work experience] or military service experience
• Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment - up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth - adoption - or foster care placement of a child
• Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment - full time employees with a total family income below $144 -000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66
• Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Ad-hoc available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Functional Statement #: 55257F - 55258 - 55259F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized