Advanced Medical Support Assistant

Advanced Medical Support Assistant

The Health Administration / Patient Business Service is recruiting for a well-qualified Advanced Medical Support Assistant (AMSA) for the Dayton VA Medical Center. The AMSA provides support across multiple clinics, services, and sections, with a focus on referral coordination, scheduling focus on new referrals.

Total Rewards of an Allied Health Professional Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Answering and initiating telephone calls and secure messages
• Greeting patients
• Performing check in and check out
• Capturing insurance and demographic information
• Relaying messages to appropriate staff
• Scheduling appointments
• Interpreting and verifying provider orders
• Serving as Administrative Referral Coordination Team Member utilizing Consult Toolbox (CTB) to determine and document community care eligibility status and scheduling contact attempts
• Utilizing numerous VHA software applications including, but not limited to, CPRS, Vista, VSE GUI, VAOS Scheduling Manager, VEText, ICB buffer, Vet Link, Kiosk, Consult Tracking Manager, and Virtual Care Manager
• Developing and/or maintaining effective and efficient communication with the patient, interprofessional care delivery teams, VA medical centers, and other non-VA agencies/medical facilities
• Scheduling, canceling, re-scheduling patient appointments in line with patient requests, return to clinic orders, recalls, and consults
• Entering no-show and cancellation information
• Monitoring appointment requests from multiple electronic sources
• Gathering and obtaining medical information from patients
• Reviewing electronic health record, obtaining medical records, faxing, completing administrative documentation
• Identifying and addressing incomplete encounters
• Participating in huddles with other team member staff to determine the daily needs
• Monitoring outpatient appointments and scheduling related data
• Verifying and updating demographics when contacted by patients
• Managing software applications to verify and validate accuracy and resolve issues
• Evaluating patient information and clinic schedule lists informing interprofessional team members about patient care needs

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 0730-1600 or 0800-1630

Recruitment Incentive (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: May be available at service discretion

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized

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.
• 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.

Qualifications:

Basic Requirements:

• Citizenship. Citizen of the United States.
• Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens.
• Experience. (1) Experience. No experience required.
• (2) Education. High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education.
• 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:
• (1) Such employees may be reassigned, promoted, or changed to a lower grade within the occupation.
• (2) 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.
• (3) 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 Determinations:

a. Creditable Experience:

• (1) 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.
• (2) 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.
• (3) Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience as an MSA or an equivalent administrative patient support in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting is creditable according to its relationship to the full-time workweek.

b. Grade Determinations:

• In addition to the basic requirements for employment listed in paragraph 3 above, the following education and experience criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates:
• Medical Support Assistant (Advanced), GS-6 Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level.
• Assignment. Advanced MSA provides specialized and expert administrative patient support while working collaboratively in interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model. Work involves specialized administrative judgment and flexible use of wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or care in community resources. Recommends changes to existing clinic procedures based on current administrative guidelines. Expertise in utilizing numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics. Coordinates with patient care team to review clinic appointment availability (utilization) to ensure that clinic schedules are closely monitored to effectively support needs of clinics, and makes adjustments as necessary. MSAs at this level develop and/or maintain effective and efficient communication with patient, interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model teams, VA medical centers, and other agencies (e.g., assist with communications during inpatient to outpatient discharge; communicate with non-VA medical facilities; prepare correspondence to notify patients of normal lab results; manage system for follow-up care such as consults, tests, etc.). Other assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: processes incoming patient secure messaging through MyHealthyVet and coordinates with care team as appropriate; participates in team huddles and team meetings to manage, plan, problem solve, and follow-up with