Medical Support Assistant (advanced)

Advanced Medical Support Assistant

The incumbent performs as an Advanced Medical Support Assistant (AMSA) within the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center (FHCC), Resources Directorate, GPM Department. The FHCC is larger than just a single facility, but rather a system of facilities throughout northeastern Illinois and southern Wisconsin which provide medical and dental services to U.S. Military Veterans, Recruits, Active Duty, and eligible beneficiaries.

Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Schedule, cancel and reschedule appointments/or consults for the Veterans Affair and Department of Defense.
• Provide medical documents in preparation for appointments for patients and staff.
• Coordinate with administrative services such as active duty members, veterans, family members and caregivers for clinical support.
• Assist with registration within the VA for new/transfer patients as well as My Healthy Vet.
• Providing administrative support to assigned clinical area in participation of team huddles/meetings to manage and plan patient care, setting priorities to meet the required needs of the patient needs.
• Incumbent will help provide care in person and over the phone to patients and family members in regards to procedures and care while also resolving problems.
• Use of different types of computerized programs and databases in order to enter, modify and retrieve sensitive information and data such as electronic medical records scheduling systems, VISTA, CHCS, CPRS, AHLTA, and Microsoft Office.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; 7:30 am-4:00 pm

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 #: 00000

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized

Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements Conditions of Employment:

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.

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.

Qualifications:

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.

Experience and Education - (1) Experience - Six months 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. OR, (2) Education - One year above high school. OR, (3) Experience/Education Combination - Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.

Certification - None required.

Grandfathering Provision - 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).

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.

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.

Physical Requirements - The work is primarily sedentary. Physical demands do not exceed those of a typical office setting.

Preferred Experience:

Must have at least one (1) full year of experience that is directly related to the duties of a MSA and that equips you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position.

To be creditable, this experience must be equivalent to the next lower grade level, GS-5, and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with current MSA responsibilities.

Experience at this level includes but is not limited to:

• Advising clinical staff on current administrative processes.
• Answering phones, greeting patients, relaying messages to appropriate staff inside or outside of the unit, scheduling, canceling, re-scheduling patient appointments and/or consults including interpreting and verifying provider orders in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines.
• 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 patient's 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.).

AND In addition, candidates must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Ability to collaborate and communicate with a wide range of medical clinicians across multiple disciplines 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. 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 the