Health Technician

Help Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U. S. citizen to apply for this job Subject to a background/suitability investigation Designated and/or random drug testing may be required May serve a probationary period Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 A complete application package; Resume, Transcripts, etc Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health

Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See " Additional Information" below for details.

Drug Testing Required Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

GS-5 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-5 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-4. 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. GS-6 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 Individual Occupational Requirement for positions at GS-4 and above: Positions in this series range widely in type and include support duties to medical or health personnel such as audiologists, speech pathologists, medical officers, and optometrists.

Therefore, technician experience is experience that required application of the knowledge, methods, and techniques of the position to be filled. OR, Education and Training: For GS-5: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, with major study or at least 24 semester hours in subjects directly related to the position. Specialized Experience is required in addition to the Individual Occupational Requirement You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-5 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-0 4 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of specialized experience is defined as: Recognizing life-threatening situations and acting to correct emergent and urgent situations according to national/local policy; assisting licensed personnel with crisis intervention and management of aggressive or suicidal psychiatric patients using one-to-one observations and applying prevention and management of disruptive behavior techniques; using communication techniques such as mirroring, active listening, and restating required to complete required documentation; maintains safe and therapeutic environment for the patient while promoting a sense of worth and dignity under the supervision of licensed personnel; obtains patient vital signs, document in the EHR, and report any vitals outside of normal range to licensed staff; and provides clerical administrative support coordination for the unit.

OR, Education : Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have 4-year course of study above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with courses related to the occupation.

OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond education in excess of the first 60 semester hours of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirements. Two full academic years of study, or 60 semester hours, beyond the second year is equivalent to l year of specialized experience. To calculate, first identify the percentage of required education you have earned (when substituting, you cannot use the first 60 semester hours that you earned).

Then identify the percentage of required experience you possess. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify at the GS-05. For example, an applicant who has 9 semester hours of graduate level education (i. e. 50% of graduate education required) and 6 months of creditable specialized experience (i. e. 50% of the required experience) would equal 100% of the required experience for the position A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

GS-6 Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-05 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience is defined as: Recognizing life-threatening situations and acting to correct emergent and urgent situations according to national/local policy; assisting licensed personnel with crisis intervention and management of aggressive or suicidal psychiatric patients using one-to-one observations and applying prevention and management of disruptive behavior techniques; using communication techniques such as mirroring, active listening, and restating required to complete required documentation; maintains safe and therapeutic environment for the patient while promoting a sense of worth and dignity under the supervision of licensed personnel; obtains patient vital signs, document in the EHR, and report any vitals outside of normal range to licensed staff; and provides clerical administrative support coordination for the unit.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.

g. Peace Corps, Ameri Corps) 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. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e. g. Peace Corps, Ameri Corps) 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. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Conflict Management Customer Service (Clerical/Technical) Interpersonal Effectiveness Patient Care Education A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. There is no educational substitution for the GS-06 level. 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: http: //ope. ed. gov/accreditation/. 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. Additional information The following will be communicated to applicants for VA employment in a testing designated position and will also be included in all VA vacancy announcements for such positions: All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drugs use prior to appointment.

Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. 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 well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors if applicable, and must be proficient in most of the requirements of the job.

Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website which can be found at www. opm. gov/. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave : Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave.

Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application. Read more Benefits Help 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 window Learn more about federal benefits. Review our benefits 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.