The Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical) serves in a generalist role to support and manage telehealth operations and is typically stationed at a clinical care delivery site (VA Medical Center, CBOC, VA Outreach Clinic, etc.), with duties that may require travel.
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: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. English Language Proficiency. A candidate will not be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C. chapters 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English. Experience. One year of experience in a health care field that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work such as but not limited to a medical or clinical assistant (or technician) or health technician. OR Education. Four academic years above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with courses related to the occupation. OR Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable. Examples are listed below:(a) Six months of experience in the health care field and two years of education above high school that included at least six semester hours in health care related courses such as, biological science, surgical technician courses, nursing assistant or other courses related to the position; or an associate degree in a health care related field; or(b) Six months of experience in the health care field and successful completion of a course for health care technicians, hospital corpsmen, or medical service specialists given by the U.S. Armed Forces. Certification. None Grandfathering Provision. All Health Technicians (Telehealth Clinical) employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series, and grade held. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply: (1) Such employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journeyman) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions. (2) Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. (3) If an employee who was retained (grandfathered) under this provision leaves that occupation, the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re-entry to the occupation. Grade Determinations: GS-7 Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical) Advanced Level Specialized Experience At least 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level that demonstrates the technical competencies described at this level. Experience or this position includes that which provides a working knowledge and ability to screen patients for Telehealth modality and refer patients that do not meet established criteria to appropriate care; capture and transmission of clinical images and/or data, obtains consent as necessary, generates consults according to established procedures for each telehealth specialty, transmits images or clinical data to the electronic medical record, provides patient education regarding general anatomy, disease processes and prevention as appropriate, and takes appropriate action based on the providers' findings and recommendations; provides hands on assistance and reports clinical observations under the direction of a licensed independent Practitioner or clinical specialist; work out process issues, equipment needs, problems, data collection and any other logistical issues; conducts routine inventories and consistently tracking location/status of Telehealth technology located at assigned site; troubleshoots, repairs, and coordination of replacement equipment as necessary. Assignment: At the Advanced Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical) level, the incumbent will monitor and capture workload credit, develop reporting procedures and participate in performance improvement activities aimed at improving patient care access and Telehealth processes. This would include; sampling techniques, taking measurements at various points in the telehealth process; and develop and provide reporting procedures that identifies and analyzes inherent weaknesses in work and telehealth procedures. The incumbent will coordinate and work with Biomed and IT staff for the installation and upgrade of hardware and software for all telehealth technologies; will be responsible for advanced telehealth technical support to patients, staff and providers; provides technical consultation and support for staff and patients via phone, web chat, social media and face to face sessions; provides instruction, training and resources on the use of advanced telehealth technologies to patients, staff and providers alike for the delivery of care using telehealth technologies. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience above, you must demonstrate all of the following KSAs. Ability to use independent technical judgment to analyze, evaluate and resolve problems. Knowledge of quality control and assurance procedures and principles of performance improvement. Ability to function effectively between competing priorities. Knowledge of proper maintenance and troubleshooting of telehealth equipment. Ability to work with a team to provide technical guidance, plan, organize and coordinate activities of a Health Technician in order to effectively complete job duties of assignment such as distributing workload, monitoring the status and progress of work, monitoring accuracy of work. Ability to assist in Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical) development, outcome management and strategic planning. Ability to perform successful knowledge transfer regarding the use of telehealth technologies. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS7. Physical Requirements: The work requires some physical exertion such as prolonged periods of standing, bending, reaching, crouching, stooping, stretching, and lifting moderately heavy items such as manuals, record boxes, equipment or assisting patients. The work requires above average agility and dexterity. You may be required to travel between VA and/or Non-VA Clinical Care sites and possession of a valid driver's license may be required.
Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional The Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical), supports clinical telehealth encounters for both the patient and provider locations by serving as the tele-presenter within scope of practice, functioning as an imager and supporting clinical data for telehealth store and forward applications, managing real time clinical telehealth events, providing established patient education, and providing technical and administrative support of telehealth operations. Additional responsibilities will include: evaluating telehealth operations and supporting performance improvement efforts, providing technical support to end-users, scheduling simple and complex intra-facility and inter-facility telehealth appointments, installing, configuring, maintaining, and troubleshooting technology, and performing a variety of program support duties as assigned. The Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical) might be certified and function as a preceptor for Clinical Video, and/or Store and Forward Telehealth Operations. Functions or Scope of Assigned Duties: The incumbent performs a full range of duties and is responsible for day-to-day operation of telehealth services at the assigned location and between the assigned location and remote sites of care as well as participating in the programmatic development and advanced support of the facility-wide telehealth program. The higher-level duties associated with this advanced-level position may include, but are not limited to: Coordinating, installing, maintaining and managing the inventory of telehealth technologies including hardware and software with assistance of Biomed and IT. Providing established standardized competency-based training, guidance and information on the use of advanced telehealth technologies to patients, staff, and providers. Providing established standardized competency-based training for telehealth technology, facilitating interactive simulations for clinical staff participating in telehealth programs. Participating in performance improvement activities. Preparing the clinical environment, which may include preparing medical and telecommunications equipment to be used for clinical examination and treatment. serving as an imager and manager of clinical data for store and forward telehealth (SFT) clinical encounters including tasks such as capturing images, collecting data and transmitting them electronically for clinical review in accordance with VHA national guidelines. Taking measures to ensure patient care is delivered safely by following appropriate procedures for the cleaning of clinical equipment and the care environment while following all patient safety guidelines, protocols, and procedures. Completing standardized clinical questionnaires and templates within scope of training and applicable guidelines. Ensuring that patient privacy is protected by complying with all information security and patient privacy regulations. Receiving and scheduling requests for simple and complex intra-facility, and inter-facility telehealth appointments using an electronic resource-based scheduling system. Providing education and training to Veterans, clinical staff and providers on the use of telehealth technologies and serving as a point of contact to answer questions and address concerns related to these technologies. The incumbent must always demonstrate courteous, tactful, and respectful behavior to all customers including patients and their family members, clinical and administrative staff, co-workers, and a variety of persons. Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm. Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases 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) 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) Telework: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 40837-F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized