Medical Support Assistant (Advanced)-Rehabilitation and Extended Care

Veterans Health Administration • Fort Meade, SD

8d • Onsite

About The Position

The incumbent is an integral team member within a large Rehab & Extended Care (REC) Department at the Black Hills VAMC, a Complexity Level 2 facility. The REC Department houses multiple medical provider clinics and services including Interventional Pain, Nursing, Social Work, Psychology, Chiropractic, Massage Therapy, Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Speech Language Pathology. 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. The position requires expertise in utilizing numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics involved in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model. The Medical Support Assistant (MSA) coordinates with multiple patient care teams to review clinic appointment availability and ensure clinic schedules are closely monitored to effectively support clinic needs, adjusting as necessary. MSAs at this level develop and/or maintain effective communication with patients, interdisciplinary teams, VA medical centers, and other agencies. This includes assisting with communications during inpatient to outpatient discharge, communicating with non-VA medical facilities, preparing correspondence to notify patients of referral care team coordination, and managing a system for follow-up care such as consults and tests.

Requirements

• Must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Must complete all required steps in the process, including an online assessment.
• 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 forms of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement.
• Must complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
• Will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period.
• All qualifying experience must be clearly described in the application package.
• Citizenship: Be a citizen of the United States (U.S.).
• Education: High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education.
• English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English.
• One year of experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level that equips the candidate with the following:
• Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients.
• Skill in customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns, and refer to the appropriate staff, as necessary, to ensure a satisfactory resolution.
• Ability to operate computerized programs and systems in order to enter, modify, and retrieve sensitive medical and patient identifying information (PII) into or from electronic health records, scheduling systems, and/or reports.
• Ability to schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting.
• Ability to work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work.
• Ability to communicate effectively and professionally in person, electronically, and/or by telephone, with internal and external customers.
• 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.

Nice To Haves

• 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).

Responsibilities

• Recommend changes to existing clinic procedures based on current administrative guidelines.
• Coordinates with the multiple patient care teams to review clinic appointment availability (utilization) to ensure that clinic schedules are closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinics and adjust as necessary.
• Processes incoming patient secure messaging through MyHealthyVet and coordinates with care team as appropriate.
• Participating 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).

Benefits

• 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.
• Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent.

What This Job Offers

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