Medical Support Assistant

US Department of Veterans Affairs; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

US Department of Veterans Affairs Long Beach VA Health Care System is seeking one Medical Support Assistant to support the Health Administration Service in Long Beach, CA. The role emphasizes patient contact, scheduling, data entry, document processing, and coordination with clinical staff to facilitate timely care in a busy VA environment.

Candidates must meet basic requirements; high school diploma or equivalent, English proficiency, and potential grandfathering provisions for current VA staff

Qualifications

• Ability to meet, communicate, and interact with individuals from varying backgrounds to facilitate medical care.
• 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.
• Ability to operate computerized programs and systems to enter, modify, and retrieve sensitive medical information and scheduling data.

Skills

Communication

Office automation

Medical terminology

Patient messaging

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Tools

EHR systems

Scheduling software

Scanning software

Phone systems

Job description

The Long Beach VA Health Care Systems Health Administration Service is recruiting for one (1) Medical Support Assistant position within the Long Beach VAMC.

Welcome to VA Long Beach

Tibor Rubin - History 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.
• 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: none
  • Education: High school diploma or transcript (including homeschooling), General Education Development (GED), certificate, Proficiency certificate issued by a State or Territorial Board or Department of Education, Post-high school education

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).

Grandfathering Provision

All MSAs employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series, and grade held, which are a part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:

• Such employees may be reassigned, promoted, or changed to a lower grade within the occupation 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).
• Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
• If an employee who was converted to Title 38 hybrid status under this provision leaves the occupation, the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation.

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.

GS-3

No requirements beyond meeting Basic Requirements.

GS-4

In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements, candidates must possess one (1) year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level GS-3 Grade Level.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate ALL of the following KSAs:

• 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.
• 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.

GS-5 (Full Performance Level)

In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements, candidates must possess one (1) year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level GS-4 Grade Level.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate ALL of the following KSAs:

• 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.

References: VA Handbook 5005/53, Part II, Appendix G45, Medical Support Assistant GS-679.

The Full performance level of this vacancy is GS-05. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.VA Handbook 5005/53, Part II, Appendix G45, Medical Support Assistant GS-679.

Physical Requirements

Work is generally sedentary in nature with some walking, standing and bending. Occasionally requires moderate physical activity, e.g., carrying light items such as books and papers or lifting stacks of boxes or records. Work is typically performed in an office setting; adequately lighted, quiet, and controlled atmosphere. Follows prescribed safety procedures; uses appropriate lifting methods and body mechanics for heavy lifting or moving heavy objects; reports observed potential safety hazards to appropriate personnel; removes or corrects safety hazards when possible; utilizes appropriate sanitary or aseptic techniques, when applicable.