Clinical Lab Scientist (Technical)

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

Qualifications:

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

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.
• Education: A bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university.
• Certification:
  • Candidates must meet one of the certification options below.
    • Generalist certification as an MLS given by ASCP BOC or AMT.
    • Generalist certification as an MT given by ASCP BOR or AMT.
    • Categorical certification or Specialist certification by ASCP or AMT.
• Experience: 1 year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level is required for all GS-12 assignments.
  • Clinical Laboratory Scientist (Technical Specialist), GS-12. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
    • Knowledge and understanding of concepts, principles, methodology of medical laboratory technology, regulatory and accrediting agency requirements, medico-legal requirements, and pertinent statistics sufficient to perform complex diagnostic tests.
    • Knowledge of instructional techniques to instruct newly hired clinical laboratory scientists and clinical pathology residents in proper performance of tests and applications of laboratory procedures.
    • Knowledge of one or more advanced clinical laboratory functions.
    • Skill to apply new scientific/technical developments to develop procedures for new tests and modify existing procedures and methods to resolve problems relative to complex and difficult situations.
    • Ability to provide guidance and technical direction to accomplish the work of a clinical laboratory.
    • Ability to provide guidance and technical direction to accomplish the work of the specific laboratory section.

Assignment. The CLS serves as a Technical Specialist CLS, providing expert authoritative advice and consultation for more markedly difficult, complex, unique and/or emerging tests that require special knowledge. Examples include, but are not limited to, molecular pathology, gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy, and flow cytometry. The CLS advises all organizational levels on various aspects of specialized testing, including appropriateness that takes into consideration clinical context. The CLS advises on alternate testing to overcome ambiguities in the clinical diagnoses and analyzes emerging trends and technology to adopt appropriate methods and testing. The CLS develops policies, precedents, regulatory, licensing, and accrediting requirements to establish, monitor, and maintain the specialized testing. The CLS assumes responsibility for training and competency assessment of staff and students within the area assigned. The technical specialist often works independently and is given freedom of action under the general guidance of a pathologist or other laboratory practitioner.

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).

Preferred Experience: Blood Bank and Core Lab experience within the past 3 years.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

Physical Requirements: This position requires visual acuity, keen hearing, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. This position requires mostly periods of continued walking, standing, stooping, sitting, bending, pulling, and pushing. Transferring patients and objects may be required. The incumbent may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don protective clothing in isolation situations. The incumbent may occasionally be exposed to patients/residents who are combative secondary to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders. The incumbent must be a mature, flexible, sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations, able to shift priorities based on stakeholder needs.

Responsibilities:

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Work Schedule: 3:00 PM - 11:30 PM Monday - Friday rotating weekends and holidays.
Compressed/Flexible:Not Authorized.
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized.
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases.
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)
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)
Telework: Not Authorized.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Duties:

The Clinical Laboratory Scientist (CLS) provides authoritative consultative services to management at all levels of the organization as it applies to quality management in hematology/coagulation/clinical chemistry/urinalysis/immunohematology/microbiology, and reference laboratory settings. Maintains a laboratory performance improvement program and ensures monitoring of components and customer feedback. Interacts with management officials and organizations involved in inter-laboratory quality assurance and proficiency testing. Assignments may include laboratory test development or modification, method validation/performance evaluations, and/or providing consultation services to health care providers.

The CLS at this level generally have professional oversight responsibilities and may have responsibility for a specific large scale automated analytical instrument system; a specific area of laboratory functions, such as employee competency records, supply functions, quality control review, new method development, or employee or student training; or provide professional and technical advice to other technicians and technologists on evening or night shifts. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), and range of variety, and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Duties and responsibilities may include any combination of those found at the GS-13 level; however, individuals in these assignments are not given the freedom of action typically found at the higher level.

• Serves as a Technical Specialist CLS, providing expert authoritative advice and consultation for more markedly difficult, complex, unique and/or emerging tests that require special knowledge.
• Advises all organizational levels on various aspects of specialized testing, including appropriateness that takes into consideration clinical context.
• Advises on alternate testing to overcome ambiguities in the clinical diagnoses and analyzes emerging trends and technology to adopt appropriate methods and testing.
• Develops policies, precedents, regulatory, licensing, and accrediting requirements to establish, monitor, and maintain the specialized testing.
• Assumes responsibility for training and competency assessment of staff and students within the area assigned.
• Often works independently and is given freedom of action under the general guidance of a pathologist or other laboratory practitioner.
• Assume supervisory responsibilities in the absence of the laboratory supervisor.

Salary : $417