Lead Medical Support Assistant

Advanced Medical Support Assistant

The Advanced Medical Support Assistant (AMSA) at this grade level is a Lead AMSA. The Lead AMSA works independently and is considered the chief source of patient information and plays an important role in accomplishing the administrative work within the outpatient clinics by the duties listed below:

• Scheduling appointments in accordance with VHA Directive 1230(3) and VHA Directive 1232 (2); including canceling, re-scheduling, and no showing patient appointments and/or consults.
• Verifies and updates patient demographics to include capturing of insurance data.
• Ensures all patients are identified by photo identification.
• Responsible for receiving and routing all Veterans who report to the facility for scheduled and unscheduled examinations and appointments, assuring that the patients are electronically checked-in for their appointment.
• Responsible for explaining in detailed to Veterans about upcoming appointments, ensuring they understand what they must do and where they must go to complete their work-up.
• Responsible for capturing scheduling preferences.
• Responsible for completing open disposition list.
• Ensures clinic assigned staff are appropriately utilizing Recall List (Delinquent), Return to Clinic Orders (Query from VS GUI), insurance capture buffer report, Upcoming appointment with no enrollment, VAOS report, bene-travel consults report, consult tracking manager report.
• Ensures patient encounters are completed for clinics assigned by the end of each business day (no-shows and patient cancellations through AudioCare, VeText, etc.). Encounters should be given to the Providers at the end of each business day.
• Make Veterans aware of community care wait time.
• Responsible for collecting Patient Tracking forms.
• Ensures that consults greater than 30 days have proper documentation for additional scheduling attempts or dispositioning directed by the provider.
• Ensures clinic assigned staff is appropriately using the insurance capture buffer exception list and appropriately utilizing Vet Link for clinics assigned.
• Receives and directs patients and visitors by telephone, answering routine inquiries, and making appropriate referral of questions concerning patients' care.
• Directs patients to Beneficiary Travel for transportation support and mileage reimbursement if required.
• Receives, process and arranges travel for eligible/entitled Veterans when requested.
• Monitors and makes daily work assignments, resolves daily workplace issues, and maintains efficient workflow in the clinics assigned.
• Determines and accurately verifies legal eligibility of all patients presenting for care. When eligibility is not established, ensures the patients are counseled and that documentation of counseling is filed in the enrollment system. Follow-up to ensure eligibility is verified.
• Review the eligibility and financial assessment status of all patients and updates when required.
• Completes daily rounds to ensure adequate administrative support coverage in all areas distributing and balancing workload in clinic areas assigned.
• Orients and provides on-the-job training for new and current employees as required.
• Ensures AMSAs are well informed of management goals and directives. The incumbent will also ensure employees are informed of new procedures, instructions and techniques required in the function of the sections.
• Monitors pre-appointment requirements to ensure readiness for the patient visit; perform administrative follow-up actions; evaluate patient information and clinic schedule list.
• Ensures accurate daily posting of employee's time assigned to specific T&L unit.
• Other duties include but are not limited to ensuring all patient areas are covered during episodes of vacancies, annual and sick leave.
• Responsible for other duties as assigned.

US Department of Veterans Affairs