This Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical) position is located within the Primary Care Service line at the VA Providence Healthcare System's Middletown CBOC location. This position is full-time at 40 hours per week.
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. See chapter 2, section D, paragraph 5a, this part. Experience and Education. 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: 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's degree in a health care related field; or 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. Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical), GS-5 (Entry Level) Experience or Education. None beyond the basic requirements. Health Technician (Telehealth Clinical), GS-6 (Full Performance Level) Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs. Comprehensive knowledge of computer systems and programs to perform a variety of tasks. Ability to communicate, consult, and interact with other members of the healthcare team, external relations, customer service and patient education. Ability to provide and receive guidance and technical direction. Ability to plan, organize, set priorities, work as a team member, and effectively complete assignments. Ability to read, interpret, and apply complex written instructions. Knowledge of general clinical policies and procedures in a healthcare environment. Skilled in the use of telehealth technologies for the facilitation of telehealth clinical encounters. Preferred Experience: Telehealth experience Patient care experience Diagnostic testing Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. 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. The incumbent may be required to travel between VA and/or Non-VA clinical care sites.
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) supports the provision of patient care using telehealth technologies which increase a Veteran's access to care and support a Veteran's self-management. This includes developing and delivering virtual and digital technologies which help Veterans communicate synchronously and asynchronously with their health care teams and coordinate, track and manage their health care. Duties include, but are not limited to: Preparing the clinical environment, which may include preparing medical and telecommunications equipment to be used for clinical examination and treatment; Serving as a tele-presenter within scope of practice during clinical video telehealth (CVT) and VA Video Connect (VVC) encounters including tasks such as establishing and maintaining video conferencing connections, making introductions between patient site and provider site, following instructions of a clinician to facilitate an effective clinical encounter; Serving as an imager and clinical data manager 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 inventory management, 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 interfacility telehealth appointments using an electronic resource-based scheduling system; Screening patients for Telehealth modality and referring patients that do not meet established criteria to appropriate care; Providing patient education via approved materials; Configuring, installing, troubleshooting, cleaning, and performing minor routine maintenance of assigned telehealth technology; Providing established education and training to Veterans, 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; Procedures, and operations in telehealth-related technologies and a variety of computer hardware and software used for telecommunications, data entry and retrieval, record maintenance, document and report generation; Maintaining regular contact with other staff members and the Facility Telehealth Coordinator to work out process issues, equipment needs, problems, data collection and any other logistical issues; Other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm 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) Telework: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: F03150/F03151 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Due to a critical staffing shortage, 38 U.S.C. § 7412 waives the requirement to apply Veterans' preference for this job announcement. Current and former Federal employees must submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action). The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held. This position is a LIUNA Bargaining Unit position. The incumbent may be required to travel to other VA campuses and CBOC's. Narrative responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) may be required from the selectee in order to proceed with the appointment. This position is covered by locality-based comparability pay.