Summary
The VA St. Louis Health Care System in St. Louis - Missouri is currently recruiting for a Nursing Assistant for the Emergency Department service within the John Cochran facility. Responsible personal patient care duties - supporting diagnostic procedures - technical nursing treatments - patient charting - and patient instruction which involves direct work relationships with patients and participation as a member of the nursing care team in direct services to patients.
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
- English Language Proficiency: Nursing Assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005 - part II - chapter 3 - section A - paragraph 3j
- Education or Training: One year above high school with courses related to the Nursing Assistant occupation
- Completion of an intensive - specialized - occupation-related course of study of less than one year as a Nursing Assistant may also meet in full the experience requirements for GS-3. You must submit evidence of this education or training
- Creditable Experience(1) Knowledge of Current Practice
- To be creditable - the experience must have required the use of knowledge - skills - and abilities associated with the current practice.(2) Quality of Experience
- To be creditable - NA experience must be documented on the application or resume and verified in an employment reference - or through other independent means.(3) Part-Time Experience
- Part-time experience as a NA is creditable according to its relationship to the full-time workweek
- For example - a [NA] employed 20 hours a week - or on a 1/2-time basis - would receive 1 full-time workweek of credit for each 2 weeks of service
- Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment - the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates
- GS-3 Nursing Assistant (Entry Level)(a) Experience and Education
- None beyond the basic requirements.(b) Assignments
- Individuals assigned as GS-3 NAs are considered to be at the entry level and are closely supervised
- GS-4 Nursing Assistant (Mid-Level)Experience - One year of specialized experience as a NA or experience in another medical field (licensed practical nurse - health technician - hospital corpsman - etc.) - performing technical and nursing skills requiring knowledge of the human physical and emotional states - therapeutic communication - and technical skills required for basic and intermediate treatments
- OR - Education - Successful completion of 2 years above high school in an accredited institution with courses related to nursing care - health care or in a field of study appropriate to the specialization of the position - such as education in a program for psychology - psychiatric - or operating room technicians
- (Transcripts required) AND Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities (KSAs)
- In addition - the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Ability to provide a range of patient/resident care and contribute to the completion of the nurse care plan and recovery of patients/residents
- Ability to observe patients/residents' or resident's physical or emotional status and refer deviations and/or problems to supervisor in a timely manner
- Ability to properly use equipment - materials and supplies in simple diagnostic and treatment procedures such as bladder scan - continuous passive motion device - blood glucose monitoring machine - specimen collection - etc
- Ability to communicate effectively with patients/residents - their families and other health professionals
- Assignment Individuals assigned as GS-4 NAs are considered to be at the intermediate or developmental level and are closely supervised
- NAs at this grade level function as a member of the nursing care team and assist higher graded NAs - licensed nursing staff - and other members of the care team in the care of patients/residents receiving outpatient care - home or community living care or other patients/residents who are in acute - sub-acute - or chronic states of illness
- The significant factor is that they provide care under close supervision and refer issues/questions to supervisors - higher graded NAs or other healthcare professionals
- In this role - the Nursing Assistant functions as a member of the nursing care team and assists higher graded NAs - licensed nursing staff - and other members of the care team in the care of patients/residents receiving outpatient care - home or community living care - or other patients who are in acute - sub-acute - or chronic states of illness
- The Nursing Assistant in this role provides care under close supervision and refers issues/questions to supervisors - higher graded NAs - or other healthcare professionals
- GS-5 Nursing Assistant (Full Performance Level)Experience - One year of progressively responsible assignments and experience equivalent to the GS-4 level which demonstrates knowledge - skills - and abilities that are directly related to the specific assignment
- In addition - the candidate must demonstrate the professional KSAs in subparagraph (c) below
- OR - Education - Successful completion of a 4-year course of study above high school leading to a bachelor's degree that included 24 semester hours of courses related to health care or possession of a bachelor's degree
- (Transcripts required) Demonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and Abilities (KSAs)
- In addition - the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Ability to assist in the full range of nursing care to patients/residents with physical and/or behavioral problems in a hospital - long term care or outpatient setting under the direction of a Registered Nurse and/or Licensed Vocational Nurse/Licensed Practical Nurse
- Ability to communicate orally with patients/residents - families - interdisciplinary team and other personnel
- This includes serving as a preceptor to new NAs by assisting with the coordination of their orientation and overseeing/assessing their practical experience while in a clinical setting
- Ability to recognize and react to emergent patient/resident care situations and intervene while waiting for assistance
- For example - recognizing need for basic life support - controlling bleeding and assisting with behavior crisis - etc
- Assignment
- This is the full performance level for NAs
- NAs at this grade level function as a member of the nursing care team and assist licensed nursing staff in the care of patients/residents receiving outpatient care - home or community living care or other patients/residents who are in acute - sub acute or chronic states of illness
- The distinguishing factor is that patient/resident assignments typically involve more complex nursing needs which can vary within a range of predictable to unpredictable requirements
- NAs at this level also assume more of a peer education/mentorship role
- Preferred Experience: Two years previous Emergency Department CNA experience
- 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: This position requires visual acuity - keen hearing - clear distinctive speech - and manual dexterity
- This position requires potentially long periods of continued walking - standing - stooping - sitting - bending - pulling - and pushing
- Transferring patients and objects may be required
- The NA may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don protective clothing in isolation situations or operative/invasive procedures
- The NA may occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative secondary to delirium - dementia - or psychiatric disorders
- The NA must be a mature - flexible - sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations - able to shift priorities based on patient needs
- The NA must complete annual employee health requirements - and testing - as a condition of employment
- These physical requirements will be consistent with VA Directive Handbook 5019.
Duties
- VA St
- Louis Health Care System (VASTLHCS) is seeking to hire a Nursing Assistant to help serve our Veterans in our various services
- Under the clinical supervision of a licensed Registered Nurse (RN) - the Nursing Assistant (NA) performs work assisting other medical personnel in the diagnosis and/or treatment of patient medical conditions
- Duties include but not limited to: Performs/Assists patients with activities of daily living/personal care and routine and prescribed patient care - utilizing Medical Center resources - as indicated
- Perform EKG to patients and provide results to supervisor
- Assist resident's ability to adjust and adapt to living as independently and as safely as possible Responsible for safety monitoring with patients
- Work with phlebotomy - sample collection in the service
- Communicates with patients and families in a courteous - professional manner and provides patient - family/significant others instruction within the incumbent's level of training and education
- Other duties as assigned
- Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: Rotational shifts Compressed/Flexible: As per progress in role - based on the needs of the facility
- 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: Not authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position
- Functional Statement #: 00000