Medical Support Assistant

Company: Veterans Health Administration
Location: Fayetteville
Posted on: April 9, 2021

Job Description:

This job opportunity announcement is an Open Continuous Announcement to fill multiple vacancies. A qualification review will be conducted every 2 weeks and qualified candidates will be referred to the service at the request of the service. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship. English Language Proficiency. Medical Support Assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Policy. Experience and Education. (1) Experience. Six months experience of clerical, office, customer service, or other administrative work that indicates the ability to acquire the particular knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of the position;
OR,
(2) Education. One year above high school;
OR,
(3) Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.
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). Grade Determinations:
Medical Support Assistant GS-5:
(a) Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-4 grade level recording patient messages and understanding physician requests pertaining to follow-up medical care in clinics, using medical terminology, working with individuals to facilitate medical care for patients, and using office equipment to support patient care.
OR,
(b) Education. Four years of education above high school.
(c) Assignment. This is the full performance level for MSAs. At this level, the MSA independently performs a full range of duties related to the delivery of healthcare services in an inpatient or outpatient setting. Advises clinical staff on current administrative processes. The MSA is responsible for answering phones, greeting patients, relaying messages to appropriate staff inside or outside of the unit, scheduling appointments, including interpreting and verifying provider orders in accordance with VHA national scheduling guidelines. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: scheduling, canceling, re-scheduling patient appointments and/or consults; entering no-show information; monitoring appointment requests from multiple electronic sources; participating in huddles with other MSAs and/or clinic staff to determine the daily needs of the clinic, monitoring both inpatient and outpatient appointments in areas of responsibility; verifying and updating demographics and insurance information when patients check-in for appointments. Coordinates administrative functions relating to emergency and non-emergency transfers to other VA facilities or private hospitals and determines appointment type based on the patient's eligibility status (i.e. TRICARE, sharing agreements, collaterals, research patient, VA employee, etc.).
(d) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below:
1. 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.
2. Advanced knowledge of medical terminology specific to understand medical diagnosis and procedures sufficient to communicate clinical staff instructions to patients.
3. Ability to schedule medical appointments in a clinical setting.
4. Ability to work independently in the accomplishment of a wide variety of duties performing patient support work.
5. Ability to communicate effectively and professionally in person, electronically, and/or by telephone, with internal and external customers.
6. Skill in customer service with the ability to identify customer concerns, and refer to the appropriate staff, as necessary, to ensure a satisfactory resolution. References: VA Handbook 5005/53 Part II, Appendix G45 VA Qualification Standard for Medical Support Assistant, GS-0679. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-5. Physical Requirements: Work requires some walking, standing, and bending, throughout the assigned unit, although it is considered primarily sedentary. Sitting is required for typing and data entry. He/she answers the phone and types on the computer keyboard from a seated position. Some light carrying of forms, medical records or supplies to various locations of the Prosthetics Area or medical center may be necessary, but nothing over 10 pounds.

Keywords: Veterans Health Administration, Fayetteville , Medical Support Assistant, Healthcare , Fayetteville, Arkansas