Nursing Assistant

The Nursing Assistant functions as a member of the nursing care team and assist licensed nursing staff in the care of patients/residents receiving outpatient care, home or community living care or other patients/residents who are in acute, sub-acute or chronic states of illness.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Duties may include but are not limited to:

• Utilizes glucose monitoring machine to obtain readings for Veterans and reports deviations to appropriate healthcare staff.
• Provides direct care to Veterans with complex needs.
• Observes subtle changes in residents' conditions (behavior, mood, skin color, appetite, etc.) and responds appropriately.
• Documents care, observations, and patient responses using required tools and forms.
• Contacts appropriate nursing personnel when noticing patient condition changes.
• Administers complete tracheostomy care, including suctioning.
• Monitors and documents patient intake and output, reporting deviations accurately and timely.
• Performs nursing procedures within scope of practice and in accordance with policies (e.g., enemas, catheterization, colostomy care, skin care, simple dressings, brace and prosthetic application).
• Facilitates small-group patient/resident activities according to individual treatment plans.
• Respects residents' autonomy and promotes independence through individualized care and appropriate limit-setting.
• Actively participates in treatment planning meetings.
• Uses equipment that promotes patient self-care.
• Provides verbal updates to the treatment team for inclusion in Veterans' care plans and participates in ongoing care-plan discussions.
• Enters accurate information about resident conditions in charts using appropriate formats.
• Helps maintain a clean and safe environment, removes defective equipment, reports hazards, and follows safety regulations.
• Contributes to infection control efforts and uses proper aseptic technique.
• Serves as preceptor and mentor to other Nursing Assistants.
• Orients new healthcare-team members to the unit as appropriate.
• Manages patient behaviors and seeks assistance from other team members when needed.
• Initiates basic life support and takes appropriate emergency action when required.
• Completes all mandatory training within required timelines.
• Participates in annual competency assessments and validations.

Work Schedule: Rotating Shifts
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)
Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.
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 #: 55939F, 55940F, 55491F
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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.
• English Language Proficiency. In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English.
• Experience, Education or Training. You must meet one of the following to meet the basic requirements for a Nursing Assistant (NA):
  1. Six (6) months of general experience. Experience must demonstrate the ability to acquire the knowledge and skills to perform the work of a NA; OR,
  2. One year of education above high school with courses related to the NA occupation; OR,
  3. Completion of an intensive, specialized, occupation-related training course of study or program of less than one year as a NA may also meet in full the experience requirements for GS-3.

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:In addition to the basic requirements stated above, the following qualification criteria must be met for each grade. The candidate's qualifications must clearly demonstrate the level of competence required for the grade.

GS-03 (Entry Level) - Experience and Education: None beyond the basic requirements. NAs at this grade NAs are considered entry-level and are closely supervised.

GS-04 (Developmental) To qualify at the GS-4 level you must meet the following:

• EXPERIENCE: One (1) year of experience as a Nursing Assistant or in another medical field (licensed practical nurse, health technician, hospital corpsman, etc.), performing technical and nursing skills requiring knowledge of the human physical and emotional states, therapeutic communication, and technical skills required for basic and intermediate treatments. OR,
• EDUCATION: Successful completion of two (2) years above high school in an accredited institution with courses related to nursing care, health care or in a field of study appropriate to the specialization of the position, such as education in a program for psychology, psychiatric, or operating room technicians.
• AND Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). All the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) must be demonstrated in your resume to qualify:
  1. Ability to provide a range of patient/resident care and contribute to the completion of the nurse care plan and recovery of patients/residents.
  2. Ability to observe patients/residents' or residents' physical or emotional status and refer deviations and/or problems to supervisor in a timely manner.
  3. Ability to properly use equipment, materials and supplies in simple diagnostic and treatment procedures such as bladder scan, continuous passive motion device, blood glucose monitoring machine, specimen collection, etc.
  4. Ability to communicate effectively with patients/residents, their families and other health professionals.

GS-05 (Full Performance Level) To qualify at the GS-5 level you must meet the following:

• EXPERIENCE: One (1) year of progressively responsible assignments and experience equivalent to the GS-4 level which demonstrates knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) that are directly related to the specific assignment. Specialized experience includes but is not limited to functioning as a member of the nursing care team and assisting licensed nursing staff and other members of the care team in the full range of nursing care of patients/residents receiving outpatient care, home, or community living care or other patients/residents who are receiving preventative, acute, sub-acute, chronic, maintenance, and hospice care. OR,
• EDUCATION: Successful completion of 4-year course of study above high school leading to a bachelor's degree that included 24 semester hours of courses related to health care or possession of a bachelor's degree.
• AND, Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). All the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) must be demonstrated in your resume to qualify:
  1. Ability to assist in the full range of nursing care to patients/residents with physical and/or behavioral problems in a hospital, long-term care or outpatient setting under the direction of a Registered Nurse and/or Licensed Vocational Nurse/Licensed Practical Nurse.
  2. Ability to communicate orally with patients/residents, families, interdisciplinary team and other personnel. This includes serving as a preceptor to new NAs by assisting with the coordination of their orientation and overseeing/assessing their practical experience while in a clinical setting.
  3. Ability to recognize and react to emergent patient/resident care situations and intervene while waiting for assistance. For example, recognizing need for basic life support, controlling bleeding and assisting with behavior crisis, etc.

Preferred Experience:

• Long term care/geriatric experience.
• Hospice/Palliative Care Experience.
• Rehabilitation Training,
• 1 yr healthcare experience.
• Proficient in Electronic Medical Record Documentation.

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 in the range of GS-3 to GS-5.

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

NOTE: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application.

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.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• 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.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• 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.