Lead Medical Support Assistant

Summary

The University Drive Pittsburgh VA Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, is recruiting for a Lead Medical Support Assistant position in Emergency Medicine. The Lead MSA provides support across a variety of administrative functions related to Veterans' outpatient visits, care, and treatments.

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Duties

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The Lead MSA provides specialized and expert administrative patient support while working collaboratively in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model. 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. Some of the major duties of this position include, and are not limited to:

• Preferred experience as a Medical Support Assistant in the VA
• Delivers exceptional customer service by responding to inquiries, resolving complex issues, and maintaining high satisfaction across diverse client groups.
• Engages in continuous professional development, including active participation in stretch assignments, detailed leadership roles, and targeted training programs to expand core competencies
• Ensures accurate and timely scheduling of appointments and completion of return to clinic orders and recalls.
• Provides guidance to staff members to include changes in policies and procedures, distributing and balancing workload to care
• Provides input during team meetings to assist in resolving problems having to do with operational issues or procedure As a liaison among administrative staff, patients and other interdisciplinary staff to resolve day-to-day conflicts
• Records and monitors leave calendars and timekeeping duties.
• Sets priorities and deadlines; adjusting the flow and sequencing of the work to meet team and patient needs.
• Monitors work assignments, provides input on performance, resolves daily workplace issues, and maintains efficient workflow.
• Reviews data and reports to ensure efficiency, quality, and completion of work
• Follows policies and procedures related to scheduling and access workflow, unresolved open consults and return to clinic orders and responding to actionable reports for open encounters, action required and other unresolved encounter documentation reports.
• Enters appropriate information into the electronic health records.
• Assists in gathering information related to patient complaints in the GEC programs and assist the supervisors in resolving complaints in a timely fashion
• Develops and maintains effective and efficient communication with the patient, the interdisciplinary team, their supervisor, and other specialty services within the healthcare system.
• Works collaboratively with other services.
• Orients and provides on-the-job training for new and current employees; ensuring all training requirements are met.
• Participates in team huddles and meetings.
• Manages clinic reports.
• Performs administrative follow-up actions.
• Supports all applicable services
• Appointment management, Clinic profile management
• Manage scheduling menus in VISA to schedule appointments in GEC and other specialized programs
• Subject matter expert in all administrative support applications: VISTA, VSE, VISTA GUI, Secure Messaging, Consult Tracking Manager (CTM), PATS-R, etc.
• Preferred 1-2 years of experience with VA Scheduling Programs and management of appointments

Work Schedule : Rotating shifts between 7:00am-12:00am

Compressed/Flexible :Not Available

Telework : Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement # :000000

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives : Not Authorized.

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.

PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Required.

Requirements

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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.
• 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 ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification 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 1 or 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.

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.
• Education: High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education.
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoke and written English in accordance with 38 USC § 7403(f).

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).

Grade Determinations : Lead Medical Support Assistant GS-7: In addition to the basic requirements, you must meet the specialized experience for the grade:

Preferred Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the GS-6 grade level: The Advanced MSA provides specialized and expert administrative patient support while working collaboratively in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model. 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 utilization to ensure that clinic schedules are closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinics, and [makes adjustments as necessary. MSAs at this level develop and/or maintain effective and efficient communication with the patient, interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model teams, VA medical centers, and other agencies (e.g., assist with communications during the inpatient to outpatient discharge; communicate with non-VA medical facilities; prepare correspondence to notify patients of normal lab results; manage a system for follow-up care such as consults, tests, etc.). AND

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

1. 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.
2. Ability to utilize numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics in an interdisciplinary setting.
3. Ability to organize work, set priorities, and delegate tasks/responsibilities in order to meet deadlines.
4. Skill in communicating with individuals to obtain the desired effect and coordinating with a variety of interdisciplinary care team staff.
5. Ability to provide staff development an training.
6. 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.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit full performance level of this vacancy is GS-7. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-7.

Physical Requirements: See VA Handbook 5019.

Education

Note: 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: 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:

Additional information

Receiving 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.

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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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.