Lead Medical Support Assistant

The Wilmington VA Medical Center is recruiting for a Lead Medical Support Assistant (MSA). The Lead Medical Support Assistant will function in Care in the Community (CitC). The local VA Community Care department is the 'clinic' that coordinates all patient services for Veterans outside the VA Healthcare System.

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.
• 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.
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

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).

Grade Determinations:

Lead Medical Support Assistant, GS-07

Experience: One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-6).

The Lead MSA is responsible for answering questions for lower graded staff relating to health care services in an inpatient or outpatient setting. 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 a liaison between MSA and staff to resolve day to day conflicts

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

1. 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.
2. Skill in communicating with individuals to obtain the desired effect and coordinating with a variety of interdisciplinary care team staff.
3. Ability to utilize numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics in an interdisciplinary setting.
4. Ability to organize work, set priorities, and delegate tasks/responsibilities in order to meet deadlines.
5. Ability to provide staff development and training.
6. 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.

Assignment: For all Lead assignments the Lead MSA must spend at least 25% or more of their time performing lead duties. The Lead MSA is responsible for the coordination of Advanced MSA assignments and workflow found in an interdisciplinary unit. The Lead MSA is responsible for daily workload assessments, assigning work, and assuring proper staffing coverage; evaluating training records; and determining training needs of MSAs to provide support across interdisciplinary settings. The Lead assists the unit with complex and non-standard procedures, including clinical flow processes related to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or community resources. Assignments at this level include but are not limited to ensuring accurate and timely scheduling of appointments; providing guidance to staff members, to include changes in policies and procedures; creating and maintaining employee work schedules; and acting as a liaison among Advanced MSA staff, patients, and other interdisciplinary staff to resolve day-to-day conflicts.

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

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-7.

Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required. The ability to deal effectively with organizational change, role ambiguity and the stresses of juggling many priorities and rapidly responding to unanticipated critical situations is essential.

Responsibilities:

VA Careers - Medical Support Assistant: https://youtube.com/embed/EE9c4XkaELo

The Lead MSA assists the supervisor with developing contingency plans for data/input/transmission while also maintaining suspense files necessary for monitoring the processing of consults. Some of the major duties of a Lead Medical Support Assistant include, but are not limited to:

• Monitors daily staffing levels and ensures equal distribution of workload/coverage daily
• Identifying backlogs in workload and potential procedural problems by observation/monitoring of the activities for the AMSA's and brings them to the attention of the supervisor
• Provide weekly, monthly, and quarterly reports within established time frames and report to the supervisor
• Collaborates, communicates, set priorities, and organizes the work to meet deadlines, ensuring compliance with established processes, policies, and regulations
• Researching and maintaining an updated data base of community medical services to assist Veterans with locating medical care in the community
• Provide on-the-job training to new employees and assist AMSA's with difficult and more complexed consult problems, providing accurate instructions and workable solutions
• Determines the veteran's eligibility to receive medical services through Non-VA Purchased Care and Contract Hospitalization and reviews and updates procedure manuals semi-annually ensuring all staff has updated information
• Reviewing the work of full performance and developmental AMSA's for accuracy, completeness, using current laws and directives
• Demonstrates advance knowledge of the technical health care process as it relates to access to care
• Assures authorization is obtained from appropriate service chief for procedures performed at non-VA facilities

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Telework: Not Available.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 460-05184-F
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Salary : $57,865