The VA Cheyenne Health Care System is hiring for one Medical Instrument Technician- Electrocardiograph (EKG).
Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship. Citizenship of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g, this part. English Language Proficiency. Medical Instrument Technicians must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with chapter 2, section D, paragraph 5a, this part. Education. There are no specific educational requirements for this occupation. Education may be substituted for experience only at the GS-4 and GS-5 levels. See the grade requirements part of this standard for information regarding educational substitutions. Licensure or Certification. Licensure or Certification is not required for this occupation; however, it is strongly desirable at GS-6 or above as evidence of possession of the essential knowledge, skills, and abilities. Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the criteria discussed in the applicable headings, or that defined in the appendices, must be met when determining the grade of candidates. For individuals at the GS-4 and GS-5 levels, the approved title will be Medical Instrument Technician (Trainee). Medical Instrument Technician (Trainee), GS-4 Experience. At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the position to be filled. Six months of this experience may have been in medically related fields such as nursing assistant, practical nursing, or similar fields. The remaining six months must have been in operating diagnostic and therapeutic equipment covered by this occupation. Experience gained in the operation of equipment for animal diagnosis or treatment may be credited at this level. OR, Education. Successful completion of two years of education above high school or an 7 associate's degree with a major field of study directly related to the medical instrument technician occupation. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Knowledge of basic medical terminology. Ability to learn the components, operating characteristics, and settings of the equipment to be used. Ability to learn typical patient reactions to the basic procedures involved and ability to recognize signs of distress. Ability to learn the standard positions for the procedure being conducted. Ability to communicate orally and in writing. Medical Instrument Technician (Trainee), GS-5 Experience. At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the position to be filled. This would be experience in operating equipment related to the particular specialization for which application is made or in related functional areas. Experience gained in the operation of equipment for animal diagnosis or treatment may be credited through this grade level. OR, Education. Successful completion of [4 academic years above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with courses related to the occupation, or] a bachelor's degree in a major field of study appropriate to medical instrument technician functions. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Knowledge of standard medical terminology to interpret physician orders or instructions. Knowledge of common physical disabilities and ability to position patients for the examination or treatment. Ability to learn the normal and abnormal results for routine procedures to recognize and report obvious abnormalities. Ability to operate the equipment to administer routine/standard diagnostic treatment or 8 procedures. Ability to perform standard operator maintenance on the equipment including the ability to disassemble, clean, reassemble, and calibrate the machine. Medical Instrument Technician - Electrocardiograph Technician (EKG), GS-6 Experience. At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the positions to be filled. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities. Ability to recognize special patient needs such as disabilities, impaired mobility, and complicating medical conditions in order to prepare and position the patient for the prescribed procedure. Knowledge of the specialized equipment and accessories appropriate to Holter monitoring and ability to perform such tests. Knowledge of universal precautions and sterilization techniques and ability to follow CDC guidelines in cleaning equipment. Ability to monitor the patient for adverse reactions and take appropriate action. Ability to operate the equipment to perform standard and routine highly specialized procedures including exercise stress testing. Certification. No certification is required; however, it is desirable that employees at this level have BCLS (Basic Cardiac Life Support) certification. Medical Instrument Technician - Electrocardiograph Technician (EKG), GS-7 Experience. At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the positions to be filled. This would be experience which provided knowledge of the equipment, standard tests and procedures, and typical readings including arrhythmias and abnormalities. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Knowledge of typical patient reactions and signs of distress including the ability to recognize, report and treat potentially lethal arrhythmias. Knowledge of common equipment settings and standardized procedures plus knowledge of common errors and corrective measures. Ability to modify procedures/positions to obtain the correct results with patients with complicating conditions such as amputations, Parkinson's disease, structural defects, and scar tissue. Ability to act as a mentor or preceptor to lower graded technicians. Ability to conduct in-service training on the EKG equipment and related instrumentation. Certification. No certification is required; however, it is desirable that employees at this level have BCLS (Basic Cardiac Life Support) and ACLS (Advanced Cardiac Life Support) certifications. Preferred Experience: Current Basic Life Support (BLS) and Certified Nursing Assistant Certification and prior EKG or Telemetry experience preferred. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-7. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-4 to GS-7. Physical Requirements: Employee understands that the Medical Instrument Technician (Trainee) endures prolonged periods of sitting, bending, reaching, crouching, stooping, and stretching. Much of the work is sedentary, but can involve walking, pushing, bending, standing, moderate lifting and carrying light items such as books, papers, files and supplies as needed. The Employee must be able to lift items up to 50Ibs. The employee understands that the use of proper body mechanics is imperative to provide safety for both self and patient population.
The Medical Instrument Technicians at this level operates and monitors commonly used equipment performing routine procedures under minimal supervision. The technician functions independently in carrying out these standardized procedures of limited to moderate complexity. Deviations from regular procedures, unanticipated problems, and unfamiliar situations are referred to the supervisor for a decision or help. Some assignments at this level also include developmental duties involving more complex procedures designed to prepare the technician for promotion to higher grades in a functional area. The Medical Instrument Technician (Trainee) develops the KSA's to progress to the full performance level of the GS-7 Medical Instrument Technician (EKG). Such duties would be performed under minimal supervision. The Medical Instrument Technician (EKG) functions to initiate, setup, monitor and interpret the patient's cardiac waveforms and notifies the appropriate clinical staff as directed. The incumbent, as warranted, will setup, adjust and maintain all cardiac monitoring equipment, provide continuous cardiac surveillance, interpretation, and reporting of monitor tracings of patients. The technician performs activities including initiating, recording, interpreting, and discontinuing telemetry. Duties include, but are not limited to the following: Setup and operation of electrocardiographic equipment Performing specialized examinations and studies including EKG testing, and pacemaker interrogations. Providing continuous monitoring of cardiac rate, rhythm, and patterns of conduction at a monitoring station Measuring, printing and interpreting rhythms at designated intervals and PRN Recognizing life threatening situations and notifying RN Relaying critical information, specifically cardiac rhythms whether normal or abnormal including life threating and non-life threating rhythm changes to the primary nurse or charge nurse Preparing patients for proper skin preparation and electrode placement Performing EKGs on ROUTINE, STAT and PRN basis Identify all cardiac rhythms including complex rhythm disturbances such as but not limited to Ventricular Tachycardia, Ventricular Fibrillation, Atrial Fibrillation and other dysrhythmias Ensuring patient safety by adhering to current CVAMC policy and service specific SOPs Limited direct patient care such as 1:1 observation for at risk patients The technician works under the supervision of the ICU Nurse Manager, and is given defined goals, priorities/deadlines. The manager will assist the technician with unusual situations, which do not have clear precedents. The employee performs work independently in accordance with policies and previous training. The manager is available for assistance when required and will review completed work in terms of overall efficiency or service to patients and does random check for work accuracy. Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: Full-time, 7:00pm-7:00am, rotating weekends and holidays 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) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience. 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) Functional Statement #: 50854-A, 50855-A???????, 50856-A???????, 50857-A