Medical Support Assistant (Advanced)

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Chula Vista (CA); On-site; USD 48,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

US Department of Veterans Affairs in San Diego, CA seeks an Advanced Medical Support Assistant assigned to Mental Health Service. The position supports scheduling, records entry, and patient communications with professional courtesy and tact.

The role requires a high school diploma or equivalent, US citizenship, and the ability to work independently in a busy clinical setting. Training and advancement follow VA policies; experience is not required but KSAs must be demonstrated.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent required; formal education beyond high school not required.
• Experience: None; you must meet KSAs.
• English language proficiency in speaking and writing.

Responsibilities

• Enter, modify, and retrieve sensitive medical and patient information in electronic health records and scheduling systems.
• Schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting and coordinate care.
• Communicate professionally with internal and external customers via in person, phone, and email.
• Provide patient support and refer concerns to appropriate staff to ensure resolution.

Skills

Communication

Customer service

Scheduling

Medical terminology

Team collaboration

Prioritization

Education

High school diploma

Job description

The purpose of this position is to serve as Advanced Medical Support Assistant assigned to Mental Health Service at the San Diego VA Healthcare System, San Diego, CA. The incumbent will be communicating with people from various backgrounds and must be able to use professional courtesy and tactfulness when processing the telephone calls and requests for scheduling.

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 OR high school transcript (unofficial or official) OR General Education Development equivalency certificate OR homeschooling completion OR proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education OR college transcript (official).
• Licensure/Certification/Registration. None
• Grandfathering Provision. 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).
• 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.

Grade Determinations

Medical Support Assistant (Advanced), GS-6

Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level that equips the candidate with the following:

• 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;
• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients;
• Schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting;
• Work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work;
• Communicate effectively and professionally in person, electronically, and/or by telephone, with internal and external customers;
• Customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns, and refer to the appropriate staff, as necessary, to ensure a satisfactory resolution.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

Candidates MUST demonstrate ALL of the KSAs below:

• (1) 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.
• (2) Ability to independently set priorities and organize work to meet deadlines, ensuring compliance with established processes, policies, and regulations.
• (3) Ability to communicate tactfully and effectively, electronically, by phone, in person, and 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.
• (4) 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.
• (5) 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.
• (6) Advanced knowledge of medical terminology due to the technical nature of the language utilized by clinicians.

Reference

VA Handbook 5005/117, Part II, Appendix G45, dated August 1, 2019. Medical Support Assistant Qualification Standard GS-0679. For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

Physical Requirements

The Advanced Medical Support Assistant work is mostly sedentary; however, some walking; standing, and carrying light items are required. Light filing, sometimes involving working close to the floor, is involved. Wrist and back protection can be provided to minimize the risks associated with prolonged use of automated data processing equipment.