Medical Support Assistant (Advanced)

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Birmingham (AL); On-site; USD 42,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

The Medical Support Assistant (Advanced) at the Birmingham VA Medical Center coordinates patient care and appointments to ensure seamless access to services. The role involves scheduling across interdisciplinary care delivery and coordinating with care in the community models. Basic requirements include U.S.

citizenship, English proficiency, and a high school diploma or equivalent. The knowledge, skills, and abilities emphasize advanced scheduling, patient communication, and collaboration with

Qualifications

• Advanced knowledge of health care processes and access to care.
• Advanced knowledge of care delivery policies and patient flow.
• Advanced medical terminology.
• Ability to collaborate with a wide range of clinicians.
• Ability to prioritize and organize work to meet deadlines.
• Excellent written and verbal communication.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate scheduling across interdisciplinary care delivery.
• Assist with managing patient appointments and referrals.
• Communicate with patients and staff to resolve issues.

Skills

Advanced knowledge of health care

Care delivery policies

Medical terminology

Collaboration with clinicians

Prioritization and organization

Effective communication

Education

High school diploma / GED

Job description

This Medical Support Assistant (Advanced) position is located in the Access & Office of Community Care (AOCC) section at the Birmingham VA Medical Center. The primary responsibility of this position is to ensure seamless coordination of patient care and appointments. Occasional travel of up to 25% is required for this position.

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: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
• Education: High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education.
• Licensure/Certification/Registration: None.

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 in VHA in this occupation, under a permanent, appropriate, and legal placement on the effective date 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:(1) 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.(2) 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.

Grade Determinations

GS-6.

Experience

One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-5).

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

• 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-6.

Physical Requirements

The work of the positions is primarily sedentary; however, some walking, standing, bending stooping and carrying of small items such as files may be required.