Nursing Assistant

Summary

The Eastern Oklahoma VA Health Care System is seeking one (1) Nursing Assistant to provide basic care to patients with acute or chronic conditions in diverse settings. Responsibilities include assisting nursing staff, monitoring patient needs, supporting daily living activities, and ensuring a safe, supportive environment for Veterans.

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Duties

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Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

• Learns to appropriately utilize the glucose monitoring machine to collect and document accurate glucose readings for assigned Veterans.
• Maintains positive therapeutic relationships by displaying respect for human dignity with patients, families, and/or significant others, using learned communication skills.
• Begins to utilize observation skills for data collection, reporting, and recording patient/resident observations.
• Performs aspects of nursing care to meet patients' needs under close supervision and guidance from a preceptor, including:
  • Personal hygiene
  • Physical comfort
  • Activity, exercise, and rest
  • Nutrition
  • Elimination
  • Prevention of skin breakdown
  • Rehabilitative aspects of care
• Begins to participate in group activities such as off-station trips, reality orientation, current events, and other therapeutic groups.
• Learns to utilize principles of proper body mechanics while caring for patients.
• Reports patient observations to the RN and other members of the treatment team.
• Receives training to set up patient care-related equipment.
• Organizes and obtains routine supplies and equipment.
• Assists with orienting patients and families to unit routines and policies.
• Works cooperatively and courteously as a member of the interdisciplinary team.
• Safeguards patients' right to privacy by judiciously protecting confidential information.
• Adheres to proper safety practices.
• Learns to use equipment and supplies according to procedures.
• Learns to consistently utilize principles of proper body mechanics and follows procedures for using patient care equipment to prevent injury to self or others, including proper use of lifting equipment in all settings.
• Performs other duties as assigned, commensurate with grade level.

Work Schedule : 6:30pm - 7:00am Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and every other Saturday

Compressed/Flexible :Available

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases

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)

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 Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement # : 623-51133-A, 623-51134-A, 623-51135-A

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• 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 - To qualify for employment as a VHA Nursing Assistant (NA), all applicants must meet the following basic requirements:

Citizenship

• Must be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA policy.

Experience or Education or Training

1. Six months of general experience. Experience must demonstrate the ability to acquire the knowledge and skills to perform the work of a Nursing Assistant; OR
2. One year of education above high school with courses related to the Nursing Assistant occupation; OR
3. Completion of an intensive, specialized, occupation-related training course or program of less than one year as a Nursing Assistant may also meet in full the experience requirements for GS-3.

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.

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)

• Experience and Education : None beyond the basic requirements.

GS-4 Nursing Assistant

• Experience or Education :
  1. One year of specialized experience as a Nursing Assistant 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
  2. 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;
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) : In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
  1. Ability to provide a range of patient/resident care and contribute to the completion of the nurse care plan and recovery of patients/residents.
  2. Ability to observe patients/residents' or residents' physical or emotional status and refer deviations and/or problems to supervisor in a timely manner.
  3. 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.
  4. Ability to communicate effectively with patients/residents, their families, and other health professionals.

GS-5 Nursing Assistant (Full Performance Level)

• Experience or Education :
  
  
  1. 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
  2. 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.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) : In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
  
  
  1. 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.
  2. Ability to communicate orally with patients/residents, families, interdisciplinary team, and other personnel. This includes serving as a preceptor to new Nursing Assistants by assisting with the coordination of their orientation and overseeing/assessing their practical experience while in a clinical setting.
  3. Ability to recognize and react to emergent patient/resident care situations and intervene while waiting for assistance. For example, recognizing the need for basic life support, controlling bleeding, and assisting with behavior crises, etc.

Preferred Experience: Emergency department experience, 2 years nursing assistant experience, CNA experience preferred but not required.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-5. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-3 to GS-5.

Physical Requirements: This position requires visual acuity, keen hearing, clear and distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. The role involves potentially long periods of walking, standing, stooping, sitting, bending, pulling, and pushing. Transferring patients and objects may be required. The Nursing Assistant (NA) may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may need to wear protective clothing in isolation situations or during operative/invasive procedures. The NA may occasionally encounter patients who are combative due to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders.

The NA must be mature, flexible, and sensible, able to work effectively in stressful situations and shift priorities based on patient needs. Completion of annual employee health requirements, such as TB screening or testing, is required as a condition of employment. These physical requirements are consistent with VA Directive 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.