Medical Support Assistant

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Muskogee (OK); On-site; USD 32,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in Oklahoma is seeking a Medical Support Assistant (MSA) to handle front-desk duties, intake and scheduling. You will use electronic health records to input patient data, verify insurance, and coordinate with clinicians to arrange appointments and procedures.

This entry-level role emphasizes accuracy, confidentiality, and patient-centered service. Responsibilities include greeting patients, managing appointment queues, and supporting workflow across

Qualifications

• Knowledge of medical terminology to assist in patient care.
• Ability to schedule appointments and manage clinic calendars.
• Strong customer service and effective communication with patients.

Responsibilities

• Greet patients and guide them to appropriate clinic areas.
• Schedule, reschedule and cancel patient appointments according to guidelines.
• Verify patient demographics and insurance information at check-in.
• Process admissions, referrals and clinic encounters in EMR systems.
• Coordinate with clinical staff to support patient care continuity.
• Provide information and assistance to patients and families as needed.

Skills

Medical terminology

Scheduling appointments

Customer service

Interpersonal communication

Education

High school diploma or GED

Job description

Summary

The Medical Support Assistant (MSA) performs duties related to the receipt - intake and indexing of health and administrative information by interfacing with personal computer applications. The MSA is responsible for scheduling appointments - including interpreting and verifying provider orders in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines.

The Medical Support Assistant (MSA) performs duties related to the receipt - intake and indexing of health and administrative information by interfacing with personal computer applications. The MSA is responsible for scheduling appointments - including interpreting and verifying provider orders in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines.

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: None 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)
• Grandfathering Provision
• Employees in VHA in this occupation - under a permanent - appropriate - and legal placement effective February 5 - 2026 of the qualification standard - are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade and/or assignment held - including positive education and registration/certification where applicable
• For employees who do not meet all the basic or assignment-specific requirements in this standard but met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed - the following provisions apply: 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
• Employees retained in this occupation under this provision who subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re-entry to the occupation
• NOTE: This provision is not intended to regularize appointments/placements Grade Determinations: Medical Support Assistant - GS-3 Experience or Education
• None beyond the basic requirements
• Assignment
• This is an entry-level developmental position
• MSAs apply general rules and policies relating to clinic functions - staff - and automated data processing methods in support of treatment to patients
• They utilize a variety of patient data systems in scheduling patients for treatment and annotate patient records
• They perform front desk duties - receive telephone call - and visitors to the MSA unit
• They make and cancel appointments - review patient records for necessary information - and review patient demographics and insurance verification
• They consult with clinic staff when processing physician scheduling and administrative orders
• Grade Determinations: Medical Support Assistant - GS-4 Experience or Education
• (a) Experience
• One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade.
• OR (b) Education
• One year of education above high school
• Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities (KSAs)
• In addition experiencing performing assignments at the GS-3 level - the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of basic medical terminology to assist in the provision of care to patients
• (b) Skill in recording patient messages and understanding physician requests pertaining to follow-up medical care in internal or external clinics
• (c) 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
• (d) 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 4 Assignment
• This is a developmental level MSA position
• Assignments include - but are 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 VA Handbook 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
• MSAs at this level refer all questions regarding medical attention to the appropriate health care team member
• Grade Determinations: Medical Support Assistant - GS-4 Experience or Education
• (a) Experience
• One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade
• OR (b) Education
• Two years of education above high school
• Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities (KSAs)
• In addition to the experience performing assignments at the GS-4 level - the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: (a) Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients
• (b) Skill in customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns - and refer to the appropriate staff - as necessary - to ensure a satisfactory resolution
• (c) 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
• (d) Ability to schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting
• (e) Ability to work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work
• (f) Ability to communicate effectively and professionally in person - electronically - and/or by telephone - with internal and external customers
• Assignment
• This is the full performance level for MSAs
• Assignments at this level include - but are not limited to: 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 (i.e. - TRICARE - sharing agreements - collaterals - research patient - VA employee - etc.)
• 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-5. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-3 to GS-5. Physical Requirements: The work performed is predominately clerical in nature and requires no special physical standards
• The work is usually performed in an office setting - working with others and/or alone
• As typical in an office setting - there is the possibility for multiple distractions from normal operating functions and the incumbent is expected to be able to physically perform the duties of the position - aides permitted (which may include walking - sitting - standing - reaching - and bending.) The work may also include the need for light lifting and carrying (under 15 lbs.) of work materials (i.e.: books - binders - papers - etc.).

Duties

• IMPORTANT NOTICE: This is an open continuous announcement and will remain open until September 30 - 2027
• Qualified applicants will be considered and referred as vacancies become available
• This announcement may close without advanced notice
• The Medical Support Assistant (MSA) is responsible for providing advisory and technical assistance to Veterans and beneficiaries who come to the medical center seeking medical care - experiencing problems or requesting information
• The incumbent is also responsible for coordinating all admin activity in the immediate area and to provide support and assistance to the staff
• The duties of a Medical Support Assistant may include - but are not limited to: First line customer service representative
• Greet and provide guidance to stakeholder at the outpatient clinics and hospital
• Medical Support Assistant is responsible for the processing of hospital admissions - clinic appointments - registration of patients entering workload data and validation
• Assists with managing consults - recall reminders - view alerts - mod sheets and encounters for assigned specialty clinics
• Performs duties to capture increase through Insurance Capture Buffer (ICB) - Patient Check-IN (PCI) - Consult Toolbox - Consult Tracking Manager (CTM+) - My HealtheVet (in-person authentication/secure messaging) - patient updates and demographic changes
• Ensure all consults are resolved within seven days and encounters are resolved daily
• Each section will be responsible for providing guidance on scheduling within their section
• Assists both the Veteran and appropriate professional staff in coordinating scheduled procedures and return appointments
• Schedules appointments and provides information regarding unit - clinic and hospital policies - procedures and locations to patients - family members - staff - etc. - or refers to other resources for difficult questions or concerns
• Maintains and monitors patient appointment schedules for the unit/clinic and communicates delays in scheduled appointments to the appropriate staff and patients
• Monitor both clinic and operating room utilization
• Make necessary adjustments to support the needs of the clinic
• Schedule - cancel and reschedule a great variety of exams and procedures
• Facilitate the scheduling of procedures and testing performed by other services
• Contact next day appointments and no-shows
• Oversee the daily processing of patients for inpatient and outpatient appointment and procedures
• Review audio reminder cancellation and reschedule reports
• Provide a detailed daily report to the Medical Administration Service leadership to include missed opportunities - consults - encounters - unsigned notes and orders and any other clinic issues that arise
• Perform administrative follow-up actions Participate in team meetings to manage and plan patient care
• Independently share information and collaborate with the medical team to assure continuity of care
• Set priorities and deadlines
• Estimate and report on expected milestones for completion of tasks
• Communicate team success in performance goals and report progress to the supervisor
• Monitor the status on progress of work and make adjustments in accordance with established priorities
• Obtain assistance from their supervisors as needed for major issues or problems that arise
• Safeguard sensitive information against unauthorized disclosures
• Work Schedule: Full time
• Work schedule will be determine upon selection
• Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay - a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of existing pay - 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).Remote: This is not a remote position Telework: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual position Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Functional Statement #: Multiple - including: 54005A - 54006A - 54007A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized