Lead Medical Support Assistant

Veterans Health Administration•Sandusky, OH

21h•Onsite

About The Position

The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System is hiring a Lead Medical Support Assistant for the Sandusky VA Clinic within Community Outpatient Service. The position coordinates Advanced Medical Support Assistant assignments and workflow in an interdisciplinary unit. It assesses daily workload, assigns work, ensures appropriate staffing coverage, and identifies training needs so MSAs can support interdisciplinary settings. The Lead MSA oversees appointment and consult workflows, including the Cancelled Appointments and Consult Management initiative (CACMI), and helps maintain accurate, timely scheduling. The role distributes and balances work, creates and maintains employee schedules, monitors quality, provides staff guidance and training, and serves as a liaison to resolve day-to-day workplace conflicts. It organizes assigned work areas and plans work with general assistance from a supervisor to meet local and VA-wide deadlines for analysis, reports, and special assignments. The position communicates with physicians, case managers, and other allied health professionals. This is a full-time, onsite position at the Sandusky VA Clinic. The work schedule is Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. Telework is unavailable, and the position is not remote. The work is primarily sedentary, generally in an office, meeting room, or training room, with occasional walking, standing, bending, kneeling, carrying light items under 15 pounds, reaching above shoulder level, or driving an automobile.

Requirements

U.S. citizenship, subject to the stated VA policy exception for non-citizens when qualified citizens cannot be recruited.
Proficiency in spoken and written English.
At least six months of clerical, office, customer service, or other administrative experience indicating the ability to acquire relevant knowledge and skills; or one year of education above high school; or an equivalent combination of experience and education. Grandfathering provisions may apply to qualifying current VHA employees.
For GS-7, one year of experience equivalent to GS-6, including relevant medical support work such as appointment and consult scheduling, no-show entry, wait-list monitoring, clinic preparation, demographic and insurance verification, transfers, eligibility and coverage processes, interdisciplinary coordination, workload prioritization, and electronic-record documentation.
Advanced knowledge of medical terminology and clinical flow processes related to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, or community resources.
Ability to use multiple advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics in an interdisciplinary setting.
Ability to organize work, set priorities, and delegate tasks or responsibilities to meet deadlines.
Skill in communicating effectively and coordinating with interdisciplinary care team staff.
Ability to provide staff development and training.
Ability to manage staffing requirements and workflow priorities, adjust work to meet team and patient needs, follow up on pending issues, and understand the impact of incomplete work across multiple clinics.
Must complete required application documents, pre-employment onboarding, identification verification, and background/security investigation.
Must participate in the seasonal influenza vaccination program.
Must serve a one- or two-year trial period, subject to written certification for continued employment.

Nice To Haves

At least one year of experience as an Advanced Medical Support Assistant.

Responsibilities

Coordinate Advanced MSA assignments and workflow in an interdisciplinary unit.
Assess daily workload, assign work, and ensure proper staffing coverage across areas of responsibility.
Monitor cancelled and no-show appointments through the Cancelled Appointments and Consult Management initiative (CACMI).
Create and monitor work assignments, provide input on performance, resolve daily workplace issues, and maintain efficient workflow.
Conduct ongoing reviews to ensure quality of work and ensure appointments are scheduled accurately and on time.
Provide staff guidance regarding changes in policies and procedures.
Distribute and balance workload; create and maintain employee work schedules.
Orient and provide on-the-job training for new and current employees, and ensure training requirements are met.
Organize the work structure of assigned areas and act as a liaison between MSAs and staff to resolve day-to-day conflicts.
Plan and organize work, with general assistance from the supervisor, to meet local and VA-wide deadlines for analysis requirements, reports, and special assignments.
Report backlogs, deadline difficulties, staff conflicts, and difficulties obtaining information from clinicians or records.
Communicate with physicians, case managers, and other allied health professional staff using sound interpersonal skills.