Clarification from the agency

Current permanent employees of the Manchester VA Medical Center.

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• Provide guidance and leadership to the other MSA staff in the service line.
• Conduct ongoing reviews to ensure quality of work.
• Development and training; ensure employees are trained appropriately.
• Organize work and setting priorities to ensure completion of duties is accomplished in a timely manner.
• Extensive knowledge base to provide timely and appropriate telephone caller referral and problem resolution.
• Skill in communicating with others in order to meet the caller's needs.
• Review service line data with the supervisor to ensure the reports are complete and accurate .
• Assures that all appropriate VA forms are used correctly, and regulations followed.
• Additional duties or tasks may be assigned by the supervisor to ensure efficient daily operations

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday. Hours: 7:30 am-4:00 pm.
Compressed/Flexible: Not Available.
Telework: Not Available.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: F03534.
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Available.
EDRP Authorized: Not Available.
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.

Conditions of employment

• 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.
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• 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.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

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 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.

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 3j.

GS-7 Lead Medical Support Assistant

Experience
One year of experience equivalent to the GS-6 grade level. Examples of qualifying experience include the following:

• Collaborates and communicates 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;
• Independently sets priorities and organizes work to meet deadlines, ensuring compliance with established processes, policies, and regulations;
• Communicates 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.; and
• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology due to the technical nature of language utilized by clinicians.

Assignment: The Lead MSA is responsible for the coordination of Advanced MSA assignments and workflow found in an interdisciplinary unit. The Lead MSA is responsible for daily workload assessments, assigning work, and assuring proper staffing coverage; evaluating training records; and determining training needs of MSAs to provide support across interdisciplinary settings. The Lead assists the unit with complex and non-standard procedures, including clinical flow processes related to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or community resources. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: ensuring accurate and timely scheduling of appointments; providing guidance to staff members, to include changes in policies and procedures; creating and maintaining employee work schedules; and acting as a liaison among Advanced MSA staff, patients, and other interdisciplinary staff to resolve day-to-day conflicts. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below:

• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology and a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or community resources;
• Ability to utilize numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics in an interdisciplinary setting;
• Ability to organize work, set priorities, and delegate tasks/responsibilities in order to meet deadlines;
• Skill in communicating with individuals to obtain the desired effect and coordinating with a variety of interdisciplinary care team staff;
• Ability to provide staff development and training; and
• Ability to manage staffing requirements, manage workflow priorities, and adjust the flow of work to meet team and patient needs. This includes the ability to follow-up on pending issues and demonstrate an understanding of the impact of incomplete work across multiple clinics.

References: VA Handbook 5005/117, Part II, Appendix G45.

This vacancy announcement is above the full performance level.

Preferred Experience: scheduling, consultant management, working in office, understanding community care process.

Physical Requirements: The majority of work is performed in an office setting, primarily while seated. The position requires some standing, ambulation, bending and carrying of items such as training manuals. In addition, there can be increased stress due to the intensity of a patient/customer complaint or concern.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.