Advanced Medical Support Assistant

Veterans Health Administration • Buffalo, NY

6d • Onsite

About The Position

This position serves as an Advanced Medical Support Assistant at the VA WNY Healthcare System performing a full range of duties in Health Administration Service. The Advanced MSA coordinates with the patient care team to review the clinic utilization by using various reports (e.g., Clinic Utilization Statistical Summary), ensures that the clinic setup is closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinic, and makes any necessary adjustments. The employee develops/maintains effective and efficient communication with patients and/or caregivers, interdisciplinary team, VA medical centers, and other agencies (e.g., assist with communications during the inpatient to outpatient discharge; communicates with non-VA medical facilities; facilitates/processes secure messaging with the patient and team; notifies patients of normal lab results; develops and manages a tracking system for follow up care such as consults, tests, etc.). Other assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: participating in team huddles and team meetings to manage and plan patient care; setting priorities and deadlines, adjusting the flow and sequencing of the work to meet team and patient needs; may work with the team to reinforce the plan of care and self-help solutions and entering appropriate information into the electronic record; monitoring pre-appointment requirements to assure readiness for patient visit/procedure (e.g., X-ray, lab work); participating in and independently following up on team huddles by sharing information and collaborating with the medical team to assure continuity of care; evaluating patient information and clinic schedule lists to determine whether patient is vested; educating providers about shared patients (those who receive their care at multiple VAs or those who have care in the community) and bringing to the attention of the provider. The Advanced MSA utilizes multiple computer applications in the performance of above duties. Successful performance in this position requires knowledge of administrative and department procedures for the management of records and forms, information security and exchange, management of reports and data, scheduling of patient appointments, telephone care, and public relations/customer service. Employees provide rotational coverage as assigned between the various areas within assigned facility. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the employee at least 25% of the time.

Requirements

• 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 evaluation
• 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 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest.
• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Experience: None.
• 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.
• 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 be deemed at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. program by a private organization specializing in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials.
• Physical 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).
• Creditable Experience: To be creditable, the experience must have required the use of 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. Experience satisfying this requirement may be paid or non-paid employment as an MSA or an equivalent position in a non-VA hospital or clinic setting.
• Part-Time Experience: Part-time experience is creditable according to its relationship to a full-time workweek.
• 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 of the position being filled.
• For all assignments above the full performance level (FPL), the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity, and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time.
• Medical Support Assistant (Advanced), GS-06. Experience: One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade.
• 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.
• 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.
• At the advanced level, the Medical Support Assistant (Advanced) (AMSA) performs difficult and responsible specialized and expert administrative patient support while working collaboratively in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model.
• Work involves specialized administrative judgment and the flexible use of a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or care in the community resources.
• Recommend changes to existing clinic procedures based on current administrative guidelines.
• Expertise in utilizing numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics involved in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model.
• Coordinates with the patient care team to review clinic appointment availability (utilization) to ensure that clinic schedules are closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinics, and makes adjustments as necessary.
• MSAs at this level develop and/or maintain effective and efficient communication with the patient, interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model teams, VA medical centers, and other agencies (e.g., assist with communications during the inpatient to outpatient discharge; communicate with non-VA medical facilities; prepare correspondence to notify patients of normal lab results; manage a system for follow-up care such as consults, tests, etc.).
• 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 patient care by sharing information and collaborating with the interdisciplinary team; setting priorities and deadlines, adjusting the flow and sequencing of the work to meet team and patient needs; identifies incomplete encounters and communicates findings to providers; as needed; assists the team to reinforce the plan of care and self-help solutions; enters appropriate information into the electronic record; monitors pre-appointment information and/or requirements to assure readiness for patient visit/procedure; manages patient systems to verify and validate accuracy and resolve issues; evaluates patient information and clinic schedule lists to determine whether the patient requires an immediate appointment; informs team members about shared patients (i.e., those who receive their care at multiple VA centers or those who receive care in the community).

Responsibilities

• Manage written and faxed correspondence, and paper medical records within teamlet/team and coordinate release of information in accordance with policy
• Verify and update demographics
• Manage health insurance information, verifying third party insurance and updating information in the Insurance Capture Buffer (ICB) system
• Manage workload information, ensuring data captured according to Medical Center and HIMS established methodology using encounter system
• Assist staff in development, preparation and use of reports associated with group practice performance, workload and business practices to optimize overall clinic practice
• Coordinate information and actions related to patient care and ancillary services, manage scheduling package, and schedule appointments with Providers as recommended by Providers, clinical team members and integrated interdisciplinary team members in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines, TMS training, Primary Care instruction and business rules
• Manage Recall Reminder system for assigned teamlet/team
• Manage assignment and inactivation of patients in PCMM
• Perform telephone and face to face receptionist duties interacting with both internal and external customers and documents interactions in electronic medical record appropriately or VISTA/Microsoft Outlook using established processes
• Screen patients to obtain appropriate medical information, providing timely assistance within scope of practice and referring clinical concerns to appropriate team member
• Process emergency and non-emergency transfers to other VA facilities or private hospitals
• Perform basic eligibility, co-pays and preauthorization requirements for specific coverage (i.e.,TRICARE, sharing agreements, etc.)
• Recruit and assist with and/or enroll patients in My HealthEVet and Secure Messaging.
• Perform other duties as assigned

Benefits

• Federal employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee.
• Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience.
• Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.
• A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.
• As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.
• Review our benefits

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: High school or GED