SummaryThis position is assigned to Health Administration Service, Patient Administration section, and reports to the Hershel "Woody" Williams VA Medical Center. Patient administration provides services to Charleston Community Based Outreach Clinic (CBOC), Prestonsburg CBOC, Gallipolis and Lenore Outreach clinics, an onsite domiciliary and the Community Resource and Referral Center (Homeless Outreach).
DutiesHelp
VA Careers - Medical Support Assistant: https://youtube.com/embed/EE9c4XkaELo
Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional
Duties include but are not limited to:
- The lead MSA works collaboratively in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model (i.e., patient aligned care team, or other specialty care setting where the team-based model is used such as oncology, eye clinic, SCI, Military Sexual Trauma, etc. in addition to inpatient and emergency department services) and performs all related duties, such as customer service and other duties assigned for the proper and timely treatment of patients and assure appointment schedules are maintained by AMSA staff for one or more outpatient clinics. He/she must assist with contingency plans for access to care by adjusting appointment times, location, or dates as well as shift patients to other healthcare providers as conflict with staffing and/or coverage occurs.
- The Lead MSA coordinates with his/her patient care teams to review the clinic utilization by using various reports (e.g., Clinic Utilization Statistical Summary), ensure that the clinic setup is closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinic, and make any necessary adjustments. They develop/maintain effective and efficient communication with the patient, interdisciplinary team, management team, VA medical centers, and other agencies (e.g., assist with communications during the inpatient to outpatient discharge; communicate with non-VA medical facilities; facilitate/process secure messaging with the patient and team; notify patients of normal lab results; develop and manage a tracking system for follow up care such as consults, tests, etc.). The Lead MSA Incumbent is able to explain the VA's mandate and importance of the collection of insurance information to Veterans, their families, other eligible patients and the clinical staff. He/she collects, scans, and updates health insurance information serving a major role in the revenue process. Promotes Veteran registration for and utilization of My HealtheVet (MHV). The Lead MSA may is required to train and monitor the training progress of other MSA levels on correct clinic operations. S/he may serve as preceptor to developmental level MSAs.
- The Lead MSA coordinates all administrative aspects of the Compensation & Pension Program, Enrollment & Eligibility, and Emergency Department, Inpatient/Ward services and associated functions of the Patient Administration Section. Assures AMSA staff explains the VA's mandate to collect insurance information to Veterans, their families, and other eligible patients. The incumbent assures staff collects, scans, and updates health insurance information serving a major role in the revenue process. The incumbent contributes to the revenue collection process by identifying patients with third- party insurance. Promotes Veteran registration for and utilization of My HealtheVet (MHV).
- Assures front line staff sets the proper tone for perception concerning quality of healthcare services at the VA, by using a high degree of tact and diplomacy when dealing with Veterans, families, and other eligible patients. A caring, compassionate and sensitive manner is essential when explaining procedures to Veterans and their family members both in person and on the phone.
- Must be able to train staff on the requirements of VHA Scheduling Directives and complete accurate scheduling responsibilities.
- a) Schedule appointments and utilize electronic waitlist accurately in a timely manner. All appointments will be made with the patient's input, either in person or by phone. This may require a high level of coordination to avoid patients having to make multiple trips to the medical center or clinic whenever possible.
- b) Notifies his/her supervisor when clinic access is less than desirable or is an individual patient cannot be scheduled within the mandated clinic time frames.
- c) Daily review of active/pending consults, electronic waitlist, recall list and VistA alerts for accuracy and disposition.
- d) Daily review of Encounter "Action Required" Report, notify providers of all encounters needing to be completed. All encounters must be completed within 7 days of the visit.
Work Schedule: Monday - Friday; 8:00am - 4:30pm
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized
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)
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 Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
RequirementsHelp
Conditions of employment- RESUME REQUIREMENTS - Your resume MUST include the following information:
- Job Title (for each position)
- Description of duties (be as detailed as possible)
- Month and year start/end dates (e.g. June 2018 to April 2020) of employment
- Full-time or part-time status (include average hours worked per week)
- You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
- Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
- Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
- Subject to background/security investigation.
- Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
- Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
- Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:
- your performance and conduct;
- the needs and interests of the agency;
- whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
- whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
QualificationsApplicants 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 and Education.- Experience. Six months experience of clerical, office, customer service, or other administrative work that indicates the ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position;
OR,
- Education. One year above high school;
OR,
- Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.
Certification. None required.
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:
- (1) Such employees may be reassigned, promoted, or [changed to a lower grade] within the occupation.
- (2) 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.
- (3) 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.
Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.
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:
GS-07: To qualify at this grade level, you must meet the following;
Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-6 grade level.
Examples of specialized experience include but are not limited to: provides specialized and expert administrative patient support while working collaboratively in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery mode, work involves specialized administrative judgment and the flexible use of a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or care in the community resources, recommends changes to existing clinic procedures based on current administrative guidelines, expertise in utilizing numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics involved in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model, coordinates with the patient care team to review clinic appointment availability to ensure that clinic schedules are closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinics, and makes adjustments necessary.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities GS-07: In addition, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following Knowledge, Skills and, Abilities (KSAs) on their Resume:
- 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].
- 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.
Preferred Experience: Experience in eligibility.
Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.
The full performance level of this vacancy is a GS-07. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is a GS-07.
Physical Requirements: VA Directive and Handbook 5019 Work is partially sedentary, with frequent walking, standing, bending. carrying of light items such as papers and books, or small parts. Some slight physical effort may be required. Incumbent may be susceptible to eyestrain from working long hours on the computer.
EducationNote: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
Additional informationReceiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.
During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.
VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.
If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.
Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
Whole Health is an approach to health care that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their life to the fullest. The VA is committed to Whole Health and values Veteran and Employee health and wellbeing. As a VA employee, you will practice Whole Health in an environment that supports personalized and proactive care.
The
Hershel "Woody" Williams VA Medical Center provides you with outstanding health care, trains America's future health care providers, and conducts important medical research.
Health care services are provided at 6 locations, serving southwestern West Virginia, southeastern Ohio, and eastern Kentucky. Facilities include our Hershel "Woody" Williams VA Medical Center in Huntington, and four community-based outpatient clinics in Lenore, W.Va., South Charleston, W.Va.; Gallipolis, Ohio; and Prestonsburg, Kentucky. We also provide a Community Resource and Referral Center in Huntington, W.Va.
To learn more about the services each location offers, visit the Hershel "Woody" Williams VA Medical Center health services page.
The Hershel "Woody" Williams VA Medical Center is one of the leading health care systems serving Veterans in the VA Capitol Health Care Network. We're an innovative care center within the Veterans Integrated Service Network 5 (VISN 5), which includes medical centers and clinics in Maryland, Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C.
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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
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