Medical Technician

Summary

This position is located within the Chief of Staff, Community Based Outpatient Clinic in Lufkin, Texas, and is affiliated with the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center. The Medical Technician (Phlebotomist) performs a variety of clinical and administrative functions in support of patient care.

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Duties

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Major Duties:

• Adheres to safety, infection control, and universal precautions always while drawing specimen samples.
• Keeps area clean and hazard free.
• Performs all types of specimen collection in a courteous manner.
• Familiar with tests performed throughout the laboratory, i.e. chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, microbiology, and cytology.
• Follows standard procedures and applies a practical knowledge of the properties of the specimens to ensure effective presentation of the qualities or characteristics critical for accurate testing or examination.
• May perform selected low complexity tests and provide technical support and assistance to the Medical Technologists in the Laboratory.
• Prepare test orders including manual order entry and extraction of patient data from the electronic health information system.
• Verify accuracy and completeness of test requests, sample requirements and conditions.
• Verify accuracy and completeness of test requests, sample requirements/conditions in the computer.
• Draw blood by venipuncture methods for a variety of test procedures.
• Provide proper post-venipuncture care to patient.
• Collect blood cultures using proper protocol to avoid skin contaminations.

Work Schedule: Monday- Friday, 7:00am - 3:30pm (Subject to change based on the needs of the Agency)

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Medical Technician/ PD04176A

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Physical Requirements : The work requires extensive and recurring physical exertion such as standing for long periods of time, bending, lifting, walking, stooping and stretching. The work requires manual dexterity and a large degree of concentration.

Work Environment: The work is performed in a medical laboratory with daily exposure to patients and materials carrying infectious diseases and hazardous chemicals. Proper precautions are practiced. The employee has the potential to be exposed to communicable disease. The work involves regular and recurring moderate risks or discomforts which require special safety precautions, e.g., working around carts, or machines; with bio-hazardous samples, contagious diseases or irritant chemicals, and some risk of needle stick. Employees are required to use protective clothing or gear such as masks, gowns, coats, goggles, gloves or shields to biohazard risks.

Requirements

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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.
• 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
• 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 will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period 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 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, 09/02/2026.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR) : Applicants must meet the Individual Occupational Requirements described below in addition to the GS-4 qualification requirements.

Specialized Experience:

(a) Technical medical laboratory support work such as performing laboratory tests and examinations (chemical, microbiologic, hematologic and blood banking) and preparing reports of findings or

(b) Technical support work in a closely related field, e.g., biological laboratory technician work, that required application of the methods and techniques for the position to be filled.

OR,

Education and Training: Successful completion of (a) an associate-degree course of study of which the 2nd year of the 2-year program included successful completion of a training course of approximately a year's duration in a certified laboratory assistant school approved by a nationally recognized accrediting agency; (b) 1 year of study that included 6 semester hours in chemistry and/or the biological sciences, plus successful completion of the training course as described in (a) above for GS-3; or (c) 2 years of study that included at least 12 semester hours of chemistry and/or biological science course work that must have been directly related to the specialization of the position to be filled.(Transcript Required)

In addition to meeting the above Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR), applicants must also meet the below general and specialized experience and/or directly related education relevant to this position.

You must have 6 months of specialized experience and 6 months of generalized experience and/or meet educational requirements or a combination of specialized experience and education.

General Experience is : Any type of work that demonstrates the ability to perform the work of the position, or (2) experience that provided a familiarity with the subject matter or processes of the broad subject area of the occupation. Specialized Experience is: performing or assisting with blood collection procedures, such as venipuncture or capillary collection; preparing, labeling, handling, or processing patient specimens for testing; verifying patient identification and following established procedures to ensure accurate specimen collection; entering, retrieving, or maintaining patient or laboratory information in electronic systems or records; and providing customer service and communicating with patients, clinical staff, or other healthcare personnel.

OR,

Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have 2 years above high school with courses related to the occupation.(Transcript required)

OR,

Combination of Experience and Education : Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and 2 years above high school with courses related to the occupation. Determine the total qualifying experience as a percentage of the 1 year of experience required for GS-4; then determine the education as a percentage of the 2 years of education that meets the requirements for GS-4. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for GS-4. (Transcript required).

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on 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

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

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.