Lead Medical Support Assistant

Veterans Health Administration • Charleston, SC

2d • Onsite

About The Position

The Physical Medicine and Rehab Service at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center in Charleston, South Carolina, is seeking a full-time Lead Medical Support Assistant. The position is located in the Physical Integrated Medicine Service and reports to the Administrative Officer of PIMS. The incumbent provides advisory and technical support, including handling and scheduling requests for Compensation and Pension (C&P) examinations, supporting clinical staff, coordinating with Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and other offices, and providing administrative support for C&P and Registry examinations.

The Lead Medical Support Assistant coordinates advanced MSA assignments and workflow in an interdisciplinary unit. The lead spends at least 25% of work time performing lead duties, including daily workload assessments, assigning tasks, ensuring staffing coverage, reviewing training records, and determining staff training needs. The role also supports complex and non-standard procedures related to access to care across clinics, specialties, and community resources.

This is a permanent, onsite position with a Monday–Friday schedule from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Telework is unavailable. The full performance level is GS-07. Recruitment or relocation incentives and permanent change of station assistance are not authorized.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship, subject to the stated exception under VA policy when qualified citizens cannot be recruited.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.
• Experience in clerical, office, customer-service, or other administrative work demonstrating the ability to acquire the knowledge and skills needed for the position.
• High school diploma, GED equivalency certificate, or state or territorial proficiency certificate, unless qualifying under the applicable VHA grandfathering provision.
• For GS-07: one year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade.
• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology and clinical-flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, or community settings.
• Ability to communicate effectively to obtain desired outcomes and coordinate with interdisciplinary care-team staff.
• Ability to use multiple advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics in an interdisciplinary setting.
• Ability to organize work, set priorities, delegate tasks, and meet deadlines.
• Ability to provide staff development and training.
• Ability to manage staffing requirements and workflow priorities, adjust work flow to team and patient needs, follow up on pending issues, and understand the impact of incomplete work across multiple clinics.
• At least 25% of time in a Lead assignment must be spent performing lead duties.
• Must meet applicable pre-employment screening and onboarding requirements, including a background/security investigation and required identification documentation.
• Must participate in the seasonal influenza vaccination program as a VA Health Care Personnel requirement.
• Must serve a one- or two-year trial period, as applicable.
• Physical work is primarily sedentary, with some walking, standing, bending, stooping, and carrying small items such as files possibly required.

Nice To Haves

• Two years of scheduling experience in a clinical setting.
• Ability to work independently.
• Excellent communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Receive C&P examination requests (2507s) from VBA, appeals boards, or DoD/IDES; prepare requests for clinician review and delegate appointment scheduling to assigned clerks.
• Serve as backup for administrative staff, including scheduling appointments and notifying veterans by mail or telephone.
• Ensure veterans and service members receive appropriate instructions for reaching examination sites and completing required testing.
• Monitor provider clinic availability to ensure appointments can be offered within 14 days and advise the supervisor of scheduling problems.
• Review and monitor administrative staff to ensure appointments are scheduled in accordance with VHA national mandates.
• Triage requests from Regional Offices by determining examination types, seeking clarification when needed, assessing expedite requirements, and determining appointment length.
• Track and expedite IDES service members and keep DoD informed of progress.
• Use C&P and Coordinator menus to run reports and follow up on aged pending examination requests, opinion-only requests, diagnostic exam results, expedited exams, and correspondence unacknowledged by veterans for 14 days.
• Request and establish clinics for new examiners and configure clinics when appointments are canceled or rescheduled due to sick calls or vacations.
• Act as an administrative liaison among medical examiners, health technicians, and administrative staff to resolve day-to-day conflicts.
• Advise clients about special programs, including Agent Orange, Persian Gulf, Ionizing Radiation, and Women's Health, and coordinate referrals to avoid unnecessary referrals to other administrative program managers.
• Assess daily workloads, assign work, ensure staffing coverage, evaluate training records, and identify staff training needs.
• Provide staff guidance on policy and procedure changes, create and maintain employee work schedules, and support complex clinical-flow and access-to-care procedures.

Benefits

• Competitive salary and regular salary increases.
• 37–50 days of annual paid time off per year, including 13–26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, and 11 paid federal holidays.
• Up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave after 12 months of employment, in connection with birth, adoption, or foster-care placement of a child.
• Eligible full-time employees may qualify for a childcare subsidy after 60 days of employment, subject to family-income and other eligibility limits; subsidy may cover up to 25% of eligible costs, up to a monthly maximum of $416.66.
• Traditional federal pension with five-year vesting and a federal 401(k) with up to 5% in VA contributions.
• Federal health, vision, dental, term life, and long-term care insurance; many federal insurance programs may be carried into retirement.

What This Job Offers

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