Program Support Assistant

Summary This position is located within the Nursing Services Department at the Martinsburg, WV VA Medical Center. The incumbent provides clerical and administrative support to the Chief Nurse of their designated Nursing Service and unit Nurse Managers (NMs) within the assigned Nursing Service. The position reports directly to the Chief Nursing of the assigned Nursing Service. Responsibilities Duties may include but are not limited to; Receives and screens incoming telephone calls and refers them to the appropriate staff when unable to resolve issue and/or concern demonstrating professional code of conduct and effective/polite communication to provide exceptional customer service. Maintains the Chief Nurse's schedule via outlook calendar and reschedules appointments needed/required by Chief Nurse. Schedules and plans meetings including space and auto-visual reservations, notifying attendees, preparing agendas, arranging meeting rooms, transcribing, and distributing minutes. Responsible for transcription, routing, distribution, maintaining files, and uploading to Share Drive any minutes and/or documents from designated Nursing Service and/or assigned meetings within the overall Nursing Service. Prepares, routes, and tracks internal and external correspondence and documents and processes incoming and outgoing correspondence. Tracks all proficiency/performance reports, emailing NMs reminders of upcoming due dates and reporting reminders monthly in Chief Nurse/NMs meetings. Identifies ways to streamline and improve processes related to time management and record keeping ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and compliance. Maintains competency assessment folders for the Chief Nurse, Nurse Managers, and other Nursing Service staff to ensure compliance with annual mandatory education/training and functional statement reviews. Establishes and maintains Nursing Service local HR and personnel files, i.e., proficiencies, performance appraisals, disciplinary actions, patient issues, etc. Ensures nursing database and spreadsheets are up to date to maintain service compliance. Knowledge of database/spreadsheet design and building as needed for EXCEL functions, tables, charts and/or graphs to ensure monitoring and tracking is maintained for clinical pertinence, leave usage reviews, service data collection, and other tracking for regulatory compliance. Assists with scheduling interviews for new positions by calling applicants and setting up interview room location. Scans interview sheets and any needed documentation into USA Jobs / Selection Manager to facilitate efficient hiring practices. Responsible for key control, timekeeping, mail, IT requests, onboarding/access of new employees, ordering office supplies, correspondence control, and records management. Knowledge of key and supply orders to ensure timely entry and receipt to maintain production of service area par levels. Resolves and/or assists in resolving a variety of complaints by patients and/or employees. Performs other tasks and duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Full time. Monday through Friday - 7:00am to 3:30pm. Telework: This position may be authorized for ad-hoc telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Support Assistant/PD23063A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized. Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized. Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. 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) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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 probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 07/27/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. The grade may have been in any occupation but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade in the normal line of progression that equipped you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the Program Support Assistant at the full performance level (GS-7), and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Experience where you were responsible for providing administrative support functions within a healthcare facility; experienced with procurement processes necessary to obtain goods and services for an office; performing automation duties using such software applications such as word processing, spreadsheet, electronic mail, desktop publishing, maintaining calendars and scheduling, database and/or graphics; assisting in the formulation and execution of budget estimates to include updating budget spreadsheets which are used in briefings; collecting, compiling and tracking data and information; and researching reference materials, regulations, and standards to identify appropriate action necessary to correct problems or issues. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at Education There is no educational substitution at this grade level. 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 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. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. 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. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. 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. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at 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.