LEAD MEDICAL SUPPORT ASSISTANT

Summary

The Lead MSA serves as the Lead for all MSA staff and is a foundational role within the VHA Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) initiative as well as support for specialty clinic areas. Incumbent is responsible for implementation and monitoring of Hospital Policies and Procedures to meet Hospital Performance Measures. Lead MSA supports and enforces Veterans Administration Directives and Regulations to ensure standardization throughout the Hospital and Community Based Outpatient Clinics.

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Duties

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The Lead MSA monitors and makes work assignments, provides input on performance, resolves daily workplace issues and maintains efficient workflow. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to:

• Assuring coverage of all areas of responsibility; conducting ongoing reviews to ensure quality of work; ensuring accurate and timely scheduling of appointments.
• Providing guidance to staff members to include changes in policies and procedures; distributing and balancing workload; creating and maintaining employee work schedules.
• Orienting and providing on-the-job training for new and current employees; ensuring all training requirements are met; organizing the work structure of his/her assigned areas; and acting as liaison between MSA and staff in order to resolve day to day conflicts.
• Assist with clinic access contingency plans by adjusting appointment times, location, or dates as well as shift patients to other healthcare providers as conflict with staffing and/or coverage occurs.
• Interpret and communicate requirements of VHA Scheduling Directives and complete accurate scheduling responsibilities schedule appointments and utilize the Electronic Waiting List accurately in a timely manner.
• Distributes and balances the workload among employees in accordance with established workflow or job specialization, assures timely accomplishment of the assigned workload and assures that each employee has enough work to keep busy.
• Directs work of Clinical Support Section employees in the absence of the supervisor.
• Supports patient safety standards using the correct Veterans Affairs identification of all patients using two forms of identification, name and full Social Security Number.
• Reports to supervisor regarding employees' performance, progress, training needs and behavior problems.
• Provides comprehensive training for all users of systems; works with supervisor to analyze and resolve Automated Data Processing (ADP) problems; provides problem trend data and proposes solutions.
• Assures staff collects, scans, and updates health insurance information serving a major role in the revenue process.
• Assures front line contact with patients and staff by setting the tone for perception concerning quality of healthcare services at the VA.
• Conducts patient surveys, interviews, observes workflow, guides patients through hospital system, makes referrals, documents complaints, provides follow-up and suggests resolutions to supervisor.
• Acts as a Patient Advocate in assisting patients, their families, visitors and staff with any questions or concerns about hospital policies or procedures.
• Coordinates administrative services for veterans, family members, caregivers, and the public, administrative and clinical staff to ensure continuity of inpatient and outpatient care.
• Ensure that all necessary health/administrative information are integrated into Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS).
• Responsible for completion of personnel reports and rosters, timecards, maintenance of supplies and forms. Blocks access to the clinics when providers are scheduled for annual leave and authorized absence.
• Monitor, manage, and process all orders in a timely and accurate manner. Verify and document that orders are acted on and completed appropriately.
• Intervenes to resolve difficult problems and diffuses potential dissatisfaction with VA services. Serves as technical advisor and liaison with contacts at all levels.
• Explain complex regulations and eligibility criteria concerning entitlements and VA benefits, priorities for care, access to care and advanced clinic access.
• Additional duties or tasks may be assigned by the supervisor to ensure efficient daily operations.

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).

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)Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.

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)

Work Schedule : Monday-Friday 10:00 AM - 6:30 PM

Functional Statement # :70226F

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• 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

Basic Requirements :

To qualify for appointment to this position, all applicants must possess the following:

• Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States (U.S.). Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens according to 38 U.S.C. § 7407(a).
• Education. High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education. Foreign Education. To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must be deemed at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. program by a private organization specializing in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials.
• English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

Grandfathering Provision. Employees in VHA in this occupation, under a permanent, appropriate, and legal placement on the effective date of the qualification standard, are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade and/or assignment held, including positive education and registration/certification where applicable.

GRADE DETERMINATIONS. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, candidates must meet the following grade-determining criteria for placement at grade levels specified for the Lead Medical Support Assistant, GS-07.

1. Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade.
2. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to meeting the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

(a) Advanced knowledge of medical terminology and a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or community.

(b) Skill in communicating with individuals to obtain the desired effect and coordinating with a variety of interdisciplinary care team staff.

(c) Ability to utilize numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics in an interdisciplinary setting.

(d) Ability to organize work, set priorities, and delegate tasks/responsibilities in order to meet deadlines.

(e) Ability to provide staff development and training.

(f) Ability to manage staffing requirements, manage workflow priorities, and adjust the flow of work to meet team and patient needs. This includes the ability to follow-up on pending issues and demonstrate an understanding of the impact of incomplete work across multiple clinics.

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

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS 07. This position is at the Full Performance Level.

Physical Requirements: Physical aspects associated with work required of this assignment are typical for the occupation, see Duties section for essential job duties of the position. May require standing, lifting, carrying, sitting, stooping, bending, pulling, and pushing. May be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment.

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

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.