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The Health Technician position's primary duties will include phlebotomy, advanced phlebotomy, drug screening, send out handling, client service support, nursing/hospital staff training and competencies for blood collection in the Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Service at the Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Veteran Administration Medical Center. To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience GS-05: You must meet the specialized experience requirement for this position by demonstrating one year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, GS-04. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: training, leading, coordinating or supervising others in related duties such as: fielding and directing calls to a laboratory; providing guidance on ordering, collection, and drop-off information to clinical staff on clinical and anatomical laboratory testing services; fielding and logging physicians and customer complaints; advising physicians on proper ordering protocols for patient care efficiency based on established guidelines and experience; performing the add-on function for the clinical sections of the laboratory to include but not limited to Chemistry, Molecular, Immunology, and Special Chemistry, Hematology, and Microbiology; preparation and distribution of clinical laboratory specimens; performing pre-analytical screening of incoming laboratory specimens; screening for correct collection container, anticoagulant, collection method, processing time and labeling. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have completed a 4-year course of study above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with courses related to this occupation. TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED IF YOU ARE USING EDUCATION TO QUALIFY OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond the first 60 semester hours of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirements. Two full academic years of study, or 60 semester hours, beyond the second year is equivalent to l year of specialized experience. We will determine your total qualifying experience as a percentage of the year of specialized experience required at the GS-5 level. Then determine your education as a percentage of the education that meets the requirements for GS-5 and add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify for GS-5. TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED IF YOU ARE USING EDUCATION TO QUALIFY Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work requires some physical exertion, such as regular and recurring walking, long periods of standing, bending, walking to observe, collect, or record data. In many situations the duration of the activity (such as most of a workday) contributes to the arduous nature of the job. In other situations, such as in a laboratory, there may be special requirements for agility or dexterity such as exceptional hand/eye coordination. Work Environment: The work involves regular and recurring moderate risks or discomforts which require special safety precautions, e.g., working around moving parts, carts, or machines, with contagious diseases, biohazards materials, needles, and irritant chemicals. Technician will experience moderate to high level of physical risk in interactions with disgruntled patients. Employees are required to use protective clothing or gear such as masks, gowns, respirators, goggles, gloves, or shields to moderate risks, or to follow procedures for minimizing risk. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. ["Phlebotomy/Advanced Phlebotomy - 40% Responsible for proper patient identification, proper sample procurement, and proper specimen labeling following guidelines from The Joint Commission (TJC) and other relevant regulatory bodies \"Patient Safety Goals\" Properly identifies all patients with two identifiers to assure the accuracy of the specimen collected and documents collection appropriately Uses judgment and independently resolves identification discrepancies through staff contacts as needed Performs phlebotomy procedures following a sequence of steps approved for sample collection Independently responsible for selecting the best venipuncture site, most suitable phlebotomy equipment (needle type, size and length), most appropriate cleansing agent(s), proper collection vials and assessing the patient's condition before, during and after the procedure Attends to the patients while in their care during the phlebotomy procedure Must make on the spot decisions to make corrections or identify other means to obtain needed specimens when faced with patients with difficult anatomy for collection Has knowledge of medical conditions/therapy ( e.g. diabetes, anticoagulation, fainting, hematomas) and applies that knowledge while the patient is in their care Independently determines the need and initiates a Medical Emergency, Code MNR/Dr. Heart/Mr. Strong as needed In the event of a Medical Emergency, the technician administers initial intervention until specialized assistance arrives on the scene Observes and reports any physical or mental changes while patients are being drawn Laboratory Specimen Consultation and Service Support - 25% Incumbent will field and direct call to the laboratory S/he will provide guidance on ordering, collection, and drop-off information to clinical staff on clinical and anatomical laboratory testing services Incumbent would field and log physicians and customer complaints The incumbent will also advise physicians on proper ordering protocols for patient care efficiency based on established guidelines and experience S/He will perform the add-on function for the clinical sections of the laborato1y to include but not limited to Chemistry, Molecular, Immunology, and Special Chemistry, Hematology, and Microbiology This includes identifying viable samples for the request determining their suitability for requested testing, as well as locating and routing the specimen for the new test requested Incumbent will maintain detailed logs, or spreadsheets of ordering discrepancies, and add on request S/he will report trends in errors and perspective solution to supervisors Incumbent will have to solve problems using a cascade of probabilities starting from the simplest, to the most complex of solutions using limited resources Specimen Processing and Send Out Services - 25% Responsible for the preparation and distribution of clinical laboratory specimens Performs preanalytical screening of incoming laboratory specimens Screen entails but is not limited to correct collection container, anticoagulant, collection method, processing time and labeling Appropriately prepares specimens for testing by centrifugation, serum/plasma aliquoting, and visual inspection Ensures all specimens are properly labeled and identified throughout the entire specimen procurement and preparation process to maintain specimen integrity The incumbent will order package and ship laboratory specimens for testing at reference laboratories Complies with safety, infection control and universal precaution guidelines for handling specimens Package specimens for transport in accordance with all applicable federal, state, and local standards The Incumbent will make decision based on their knowledge and established protocols of clinical testing for test validity S/he will assess sample integrity by utilizing established evaluation techniques and sound judgment to ensure samples are suitable for laboratory testing Other Duties as Assigned - 10% To include but not limited to special projects and acting as a lead Health Technician in absence of the supervisor ensuring that all problems are reported to the Lead Medical Technologist to include but not limited to section coverage, outside customer complaint, and computer or technical issues Work Schedule: Monday to Friday, 5pm to 9pm; Will Require Rotating Weekends and Holidays Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position Position Description Title/PD#: Health Technician/01770A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required"]

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