Medical Support Assistant (Advanced)

• 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 drivers licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation/examination.
• 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 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public 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.

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Experience. None.
• Education. High school diploma General Education Development equivalency certificate or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education.
• Licensure/Certification/Registration. None.
• Grandfathering Provision. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).
• 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.
• Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements.
• English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7403(f).

Creditable Experience. To be creditable the experience must have required the use of knowledge skills and abilities (KSAs) associated with current MSA responsibilities or an equivalent administrative patient support role in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting. Experience satisfying this requirement may be paid or non-paid employment as an MSA or an equivalent position in a non-VA hospital or clinic setting.

Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience is creditable according to its relationship to a full-time workweek. For example an individual employed 20 hours per week or on a half-time basis would receive credit for 1 full-time workweek for each 2 weeks of service

Quality of Experience. Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to MSA experience or equivalent administrative clinical support role in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting at the next lower grade level of the position being filled. For all assignments above the full performance level (FPL) the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope administrative independence complexity and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time.

Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment candidates must meet the following grade-determining criteria for placement at grade levels specified.

Medical Support Assistant (Advanced) GS-06.

• Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade.

Knowledge Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

• Advanced knowledge of the technical health care process (including but not limited to scheduling across interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community models and patient health care portals) as it relates to access to care.
• Advanced knowledge of policies and procedures associated with interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community operational activities that affect patient flow and patient support care administrative functions to include but not limited to appointment cycles outside patient referrals follow-up care overbooking provider availability etc.
• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology due to the technical nature of language utilized by clinicians.
• Ability to collaborate and communicate with a wide range of medical clinicians across multiple disciplines (e.g. medical doctors nurse practitioners physician assistants psychologists psychiatrists social workers clinical pharmacists and nursing staff) to accomplish team goal setting to ensure medical care to patients is met.
• Ability to independently set priorities and organize work to meet deadlines ensuring compliance with established processes policies and regulations.
• Ability to communicate tactfully and effectively electronically by phone in person and in writing with internal and external customers. This may include preparing reports in various formats and presenting data to various organizational levels as well as resolving patient concerns.

Assignment. For all assignments above the FPL the higher-level duties must be of significant scope administrative independence complexity and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. At the advanced level the Medical Support Assistant (Advanced) (AMSA) performs difficult and responsible specialized and expert administrative patient support while working collaboratively in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model. Work involves specialized administrative judgment and the flexible use of a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics specialties and/or care in the community resources. Recommend changes to existing clinic procedures based on current administrative guidelines. Expertise in utilizing numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics involved in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model. Coordinates with the patient care team to review clinic appointment availability (utilization) to ensure that clinic schedules are closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinics and makes adjustments as necessary. MSAs at this level develop and/or maintain effective and efficient communication with the patient interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model teams VA medical centers and other agencies (e.g. assist with communications during the inpatient to outpatient discharge; communicate with non-VA medical facilities; prepare correspondence to notify patients of normal lab results; manage a system for follow-up care such as consults tests etc.). Other assignments at this level include but are not limited to: processes incoming patient secure messaging through MyHealthyVet and coordinates with care team as appropriate; participates in team huddles and team meetings to manage plan problem solve and follow-up with patient care by sharing information and collaborating with the interdisciplinary team; setting priorities and deadlines adjusting the flow and sequencing of the work to meet team and patient needs; identifies incomplete encounters and communicates findings to providers; as needed; assists the team to reinforce the plan of care and self-help solutions; enters appropriate information into the electronic record; monitors pre-appointment information and/or requirements to assure readiness for patient visit/procedure; manages patient systems to verify and validate accuracy and resolve issues; evaluates patient information and clinic schedule lists to determine whether the patient requires an immediate appointment; informs team members about shared patients (i.e. those who receive their care at multiple VA centers or those who receive care in the community).

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard please visit full performance level of this vacancy is GS-6.

Physical Requirements: Work is sedentary but also demands standing walking bending twisting and carrying light items.

Education

There is no education substitution.