Medical Support Assistant

The incumbent performs both routine and complex administrative and miscellaneous clerical duties as assigned with general administrative support from Prosthetic management.

DUTIES:

The incumbent performs both routine and complex administrative and miscellaneous clerical duties as assigned with general administrative support from Prosthetic management.

• Incumbent is responsible for scheduling appointments, including interpreting and verifying provider orders in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to, scheduling, cancelling, and re-scheduling patient's appointments and/or consults; entering no-show information; preparing for clinic visits; monitoring both inpatient and outpatient appointments for areas of responsibility; ensuring encounter information is completed in order to obtain appropriate workload credit; and verifying and updating demographics and insurance information. The incumbent will perform assigned duties to facilitate efficient daily operations, providing support to clinical lab practitioners and will participate in meetings, briefings, and/or daily huddles.
• The incumbent will manage the daily flow of service by coordinating administrative services for veterans and their family members and caregivers.
• The incumbent will also be responsible for providing durable medical equipment to Veterans and/or providers presenting to the service as needed and posting stock issues.
• The incumbent is responsible for proactive behaviors in preventing, identifying, and reporting unsafe patient care situations.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am -4:30pm
Compressed/Flexible: Not available
Telework: ADHOC ONLY
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
VA Careers - Medical Support Assistant: https://youtube.com/embed/EE9c4XkaELo

Basic Requirements.
Citizenship. Citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3.g.).
Experience and Education.
Experience. No experience required.
Education. High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education.

• Documentation Requirements for Proof of High School Completion or higher:
  • If using post-high school education to substitute for experience at the GS-04 or GS-05, you must submit a copy of your unofficial or official college transcript with your application.
  • If selected, to meet the basic requirement of high school education or equivalent and prior to a firm job offer being extended, applicants must provide one of the following as verification of the education requirement if not covered under the grandfathering provision.
  • Copy of high school diploma OR high school transcript (unofficial or official) OR GED Certificate OR homeschooling completion OR proficiency certificate issued by a State or Territorial Board or Department of Education OR college transcript (official)

Certification. None required.
Grandfathering Provision. See under Education section.
Foreign Education. See under Education section.
Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements.
English Language Proficiency. MSAs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, paragraph 3.j.
GRADE REQUIREMENTS: See under Education section.

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, GS-05.
Experience or Education.
Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade.
One (1) year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-4). Examples of specialized experience include but are not limited to: scheduling and rescheduling patients for treatment; interviewing patients for appointments; referring patients to other medical specialty clinics; providing information to patients necessary to resolve complaints; interacting with both internal and external customers; reviewing and documenting medical outpatient and inpatient electronic health records, as well as administrative records; verifying third party insurance and updating information; obtaining medical information from patients; coordinating information and actions related to patient care and services;
and scheduling appointments in accordance with scheduling guidelines.

OR

Education. Two years of education above high school.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
(a) Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients.
(b) Skill in customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns, and refer to the appropriate staff, as necessary, to ensure a satisfactory resolution.
(c) Ability to operate computerized programs and systems in order to enter, modify, and retrieve sensitive medical and patient identifying information (PII) into or from electronic health records, scheduling systems, and/or reports.
(d) Ability to schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting.
(e) Ability to work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work.
(f) Ability to communicate effectively and professionally in person, electronically, and/or by telephone, with internal and external customers.
Assignment. This is the full performance level for MSAs. At this level, the MSA independently performs a full range of duties related to the delivery of health care services in an inpatient or outpatient setting. Advises clinical staff on current administrative processes. The MSA is responsible for answering phones, greeting patients, relaying messages to appropriate staff inside or outside of the unit, and scheduling appointments, including interpreting and verifying provider orders in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: scheduling, canceling, re-scheduling patient appointments and/or consults; entering no-show information; monitoring appointment requests from multiple electronic sources; participating in huddles with other MSAs and/or clinic staff to determine the daily needs of the clinic, monitoring both inpatient and outpatient appointments in areas of responsibility; verifying and updating demographics and insurance information when patients check-in for appointments. Coordinates administrative functions relating to emergency and non-emergency transfers to other VA facilities or private hospitals and determines appointment type based on the patient's eligibility status (i.e., TRICARE, sharing agreements, collaterals, research patient, VA employee, etc.).

Preferred Experience: Experience in VISTA, VATAS, CPRS, ISS, CTIM

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-5. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-5.

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. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Foreign Education.
To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must have been submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs.

Grandfathering Provision
All MSAs employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series, and grade held, which are a part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:

• Such employees may be reassigned, promoted, or changed to a lower grade within the occupation.
• Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
• If an employee who was converted to Title 38 hybrid status under this provision leaves the occupation, the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation.

GRADE REQUIREMENTS:
Creditable Experience. Knowledge of MSA Practices. To be creditable, the experience must have demonstrated the 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/non-paid employment as an MSA or an equivalent position in a non-VA hospital or clinic setting.
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. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty), and a range of varieties as described in this standard, at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time.
Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience as an MSA or equivalent administrative patient support in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting is creditable according to its relationship to the full-time workweek. For example, an MSA employed 20 hours a week, or on a 1/2-time basis, would receive one full-time workweek of credit for each two weeks of service. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position.

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the 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 (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). 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.