Medical Support Assistant (Advanced)

This position serves as an Advanced Medical Support Assistant above the full performance level within the Administrative Section of Mental Health / Behavioral Medicine at the Central Texas VA Health Care System (CTVHCS). The primary purpose of this position is to serve as an AMSA assigned to outpatient clinics. The AMSA position is a fundamental role within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Patient Centered Medical Home Model Transformation Initiative.

Major duties include, but are not limited to:

• Collaborating closely with the MHBM team, the AMSA evaluates clinic appointment availability, ensuring schedules are meticulously monitored and adjusted as needed to meet clinic demands.

• Additional responsibilities include processing incoming patient messages via My HealtheVet and coordinating with the care team when needed, participating in team huddles and meetings to manage, plan, and enhance patient care through information sharing and collaboration with the interdisciplinary team, prioritizing tasks and deadlines, and modifying workflows to accommodate the needs of both the team and patients.

• Incumbent will be the first line of contact with the Veteran and must be knowledgeable on a wide variety of subjects regarding the VA.

• The incumbent is responsible for running the Encounter Action Required Report
  (EARR) and providing findings to providers to facilitate accurate workload credit and revenue collection.

• The AMSA is responsible for receiving and routing all Veterans who report to the facilities for scheduled and unscheduled examinations and appointments.

• Responsible for printing the medication reconciliation program, routing slips and confirming with the patient that pre-registration is completed including demographic and insurance information.

• Schedules appointment with patient.

• Responsible for ensuring non-VA records are forwarded to the appropriate provider for review and forward to the appropriate agency prior to inclusion into the patient's medical record.

• Scans and indexes materials accordingly into CPRS VistA Imaging, on a timely basis and within established guidelines, and makes the proper disposition of documents.
• The incumbent will review the quality of scanned documents to ensure integrity of scanned images.

• Receives telephone calls and visitors to the VA, (i.e., patients, families, and friends of patients) regarding such things as the availability of, and procedures for obtaining medical assistance, directions and information for contacting various departments, services and requests for changes in scheduled appointments.

• Must work in a multi-screen computer environment being able to use scheduling system and electronic medical record screens bilaterally.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 0730 - 1600; 0800 - 1630; 0830 -1700
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 55656F
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
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.
• 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.
• Licensure/Certification/Registration. None
• Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements.
• 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:

Medical Support Assistant (Advanced), GS-06.

Experience. One (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-05 grade level. Examples of experience may include, but 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; coordinate 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.).

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below:

• Ability to collaborate and communicate with a wide range of medical clinicians across multiple disciplines (e.g. medical doctors, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, clinical pharmacists, and nursing staff) to accomplish team goal setting to ensure medical care to patients is met. Ability to collaborate and communicate with a wide range of medical clinicians across multiple disciplines (e.g. medical doctors, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, clinical pharmacists, and nursing staff) to accomplish team goal setting to ensure medical care to patients is met.
• Ability to independently set priorities and organize work to meet deadlines, ensuring compliance with established processes, policies, and regulations.
• Ability to communicate tactfully and effectively, electronically, by phone, in person, and in writing, with internal and external customers. This may include preparing reports in various formats and presenting data to various organizational levels, as well as resolving patient concerns.
• Advanced knowledge of the technical health care process (including, but not limited to, scheduling across interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community models and patient health care portals) as it relates to access to care.
• Advanced knowledge of policies and procedures associated with interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community operational activities that affect patient flow, and patient support care administrative functions to include, but not limited to appointment cycles, outside patient referrals, follow-up care, overbooking, provider availability, etc.
• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology due to the technical nature of language utilized by clinicians.

Preferred Experience:

• 6 months to lyear or more of creditable experience using VISTA, CPRS, VISTA GUI, and/or other VHA electronic health record.
• 1 year or more of administrative experience -health care settings preferred.
• Knowledge of HIPPA, Release of Information and other applicable laws and regulations.
• Have a high degree of customer service, poise, and diplomacy. Have a caring, compassionate and be observant when interacting with Veterans, family members, and employee or peers. Must be respectful and have knowledge of a High Reliability Organization (HRO) and be able to demonstrate this experience.
• Work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work.
• Experience in medical terminology.

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-06.

Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary. Some work may require movement between offices, hospitals, warehouses, and similar areas for meetings and to conduct work. Work may also require walking/standing, in conjunctions with travel to and attendance at meetings and/or conferences away from the work site. Incumbent may carry and lift light items weighing less than 15 pounds.

Basic:
High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial- level Board or Department of Education.

Grade Determination: No education substitution for experience

• 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.
• 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.