Health Technician

Summary The Health Technician serves as a member of the General Medical Inpatient team assisting with patient care activities under the direction of the Nurse Manager, Assistant Nurse Manager, or Chief of ER. Responsibilities Duties: Assist physicians and/or Registered Nurses with procedures such as obtaining supplies necessary for physician to perform procedure, stocking the supply cart appropriately, and obtaining miscellaneous supplies from unit stock room or SPD. Clean equipment after procedure using proper infection control techniques. Assist the registered nurse with IV insertion and removals Assist with tracheostomy suctioning and care. Assist with tracheostomy suctioning and care. Participates in performance improvement activities that may require monitoring and collecting data.` Responds appropriately and sensitively to death and dying patients, their families and loved ones. Knowledge of paperwork and legal aspects of care of the dead including respectful postmortem care of the deceased and transfer to the morgue. Assists health care professional to position patient and answer patient's questions during complex procedures. Responds to emergency situations such as cardiopulmonary failure, hemorrhaging, and shock by assisting in the performance of resuscitation measures. Assist with set up of bedside medical procedures, for example: Paracentesis, thoracentesis, and lumbar punctures. Assist with moving or repositions patients during procedure. Deliver all specimens collected to lab correctly labeled and in a timely manner. Perform EKG at the bedside when ordered. Must be able to correctly apply electrodes for 12- lead EKG, obtain EKG print out and report immediately to the physician, RN staff and/or Charge Nurse. Request and apply prosthetic equipment required by patient to aid in minimizing functional limitations and reinforce instructions for patients on equipment issued. Observes patients for vision, speech, or hearing impairments. Able to determine if a patient is ambulatory, requires a wheelchair, is bedridden, alert or confused, continent. Insert Foley catheters, utilizing aseptic technique, as ordered by physician. Empties and records drainage from Foley catheter. Perform Foley catheter maintenance. Set up rooms for admissions, canisters/suction. Perform blood sugar testing and phlebotomy including blood culture collection using aseptic technique to avoid specimen contamination. Collect other specimens as ordered and deliver specimens to the lab as requested. Assist with patient ambulation, patient movement, and transport. Enter notes or patient data (Activity of Daily Living Note} into patient medical record via CPRS. Clean Reusable Medical Equipment between each patient use and per policy. Utilize Universal Precautions and applies appropriate isolation protocols in providing care for all general medicine patients. Follows proper hand washing techniques as well as use of hand sanitizer between patients. Disposes of infectious materials correctly. Work Schedule: 7:30p-8:00am or 3:30pm -12:00am with rotation and alternate weekends; subject to change based on the needs of the facility. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Health Technician/PD03742-A 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. 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 dentification 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, 06/30/2026. 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-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. 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. Specialized Experience GS-06 - One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-05 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes: experience in patient care in an acute inpatient setting; experience in EKG application; experience in phlebotomy. This experience must be supported by your resume to be creditable. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Customer Service Attention to Detail Technical Competency Admin Management Computer Skills Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work can be physically taxing and will require standing and walking. It may require lifting and moving patients into and out of stretchers or chairs and pushing or pulling wheeled equipment. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at Education No education substitution. 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. 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