Lead Medical Support Assistant

The Physical Medicine and Rehab Service is seeking a full-time Lead Medical Support Assistant for the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center, in Charleston, South Carolina.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

This position islocated at the Charleston VA Medical Center in Physical Integrated Medicine Service and reports to the Administrative Officer of PIMS. The incumbent performs a variety of advisory and technical duties, including receiving and scheduling requests for C&P examinations, clinic receptions, providing administrative support to the clinical staff that performs C&P, and Registry exams, communication with different Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) offices and VA Regional Offices, and Veteran Appeals office.

Typical duties may include, but are not limited to:

• Receives all requests (2507's) initiated from VBA (including appeals board) or DoD(IDES) for C&P examinations, prepares the request for initial review/orders by the clinician, and delegate to assigned PSA/MSA clerks for scheduling of appointments into the decentralized hospital computer program (DHCP). All addendum/medical opinion/claim file review 2507's will be given to the Health Technician to process.
• Will serve as a backup to administrative staff who are on leave to include scheduling appointments and notifying veterans by mail and/or telephone of the appointment(s). He/she assures that the veteran/service member is given appropriate instructions for reaching the exam site and for completing any testing that may be required.
• Monitor clinic availability for all of the PIMS providers to assure there is availability within 14 days.
• Advises the supervisor of any scheduling problems.
• Review and monitor administrative staff to ensure appointments are scheduled according to the VHA national mandate.
• Responsible for triaging all 2507's received from Regional Office (RO) by determining exam types, contacting the RO for clarification of exam types and assessing request for "expedite" requirements, length of appointment.
• Solely responsible for tracking and expediting Integrated Disability Examination System (IDES) service members and keeping DOD informed of the progress.
• Utilizes all Compensation and Pension and Coordinator menus in order to pull and work various reports in order to follow upon aged pending exam requests, opinion only, track diagnostic exam results, expedited exams. correspondence that has not been acknowledged by Veteran within 14 days.
• Responsible for requesting and setting up clinics for all new examiners as well as configuring clinics due to canceling and rescheduling for sick calls and vacations.
• Administrative Liaison between Medical Examiners, Health Technicians and administrative staff in order to resolve day to day conflicts.
• Advises clients on special programs. e.g. Agent Orange. Persian Gulf, Ionizing Radiation, Women's Health, etc., and coordinates referrals in a manner that avoids unnecessary referrals to other administrative program managers.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm
Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): 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 Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: FS 67302
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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.
• English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
• Experience: Experience of clerical, office, customer service, or other administrative work that indicates the ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position.
• Education. High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education.

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). Employees in VHA in this occupation, under a permanent, appropriate, and legal placement on the effective date of the qualification standard, are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade and/or assignment held, including positive education and registration/certification where applicable. For employees who do not meet all the basic or assignment-specific requirements in this standard but met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed, the following provisions apply:
(1) 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.
(2) Employees retained in this occupation under this provision who subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re entry to the occupation.

Grade Determinations: GS-07

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

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

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

Preferred Experience: 2 years scheduling experience in a clinical setting, able to work independently and have excellent communication skills.

Reference: FORMER VA HANDBOOK REFERENCE: PART II APPENDIX G45. For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-07.

Physical Requirements: The work of the positions is primarily sedentary; however, some walking, standing, bending stooping and carrying of small items such as files may be required.

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/.

• 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 (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.