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Lead Medical Support Assistant

Employer
USAJobs
Location
Baltimore, Maryland
Closing date
Jun 25, 2022
Duties

The incumbent is the Lead Advance Medical Support Assistant (Lead MSA) and is responsible for the administrative duties that facilitate the effective workflow for the clinical staff. The Lead MSA responsibilities include oversight of the specialty clinic scheduling activities, distribution of workload, monitoring quality of the work performed by the AMSAs, and providing training and instruction when required. This position requires daily communication through face-to-face interactions with veterans, supervisors, family members, internal customers within VAMHCS, VISN 5, and university affiliates. These interactions also include telephone conversations and digital communications such as, secure messaging, instant messaging, and emails.

The Lead MSA works independently and is considered the chief source of patient information and plays an important role in accomplishing the administrative work within the outpatient clinics by the duties listed below:
a. Scheduling appointments in accordance with VHA Directive 1230(3) and VHA Directive 1232 (2); including canceling, re-scheduling, and no showing patient appointments and/or consults.
b. Verifies and updates patient demographics to include capturing of insurance data.
c. Ensures clinic assigned staff are appropriately utilizing Recall List (Delinquent), Return to Clinic Orders (Query from VS GUI), insurance capture buffer report, and view electronic health record (EHR) alerts for accurate disposition daily.
d. Ensures patient encounters are completed for clinics assigned by the end of each business day (no-shows and patient cancellations through AudioCare, VeText, etc.).
e. Ensures that consults greater than 30 days have proper documentation for additional scheduling attempts or dispositioning directed by the provider.
f. Extracts medical information from electronic records when requested by Providers, Social Workers, Nurses, and Supervisors while maintaining HIPPA standards.
g. Ensures clinic assigned staff is appropriately using the insurance capture buffer exception list and appropriately utilizing Vet Link for clinics assigned.
h. Receives and directs patients and visitors by telephone, answering routine inquiries, and making appropriate referral of questions concerning patients' care.
i. Relays test results to appropriate medical staff to include recognizing and referring urgent results to the professional staff for immediate action.
j. Directs patients to Beneficiary Travel for transportation support and vouchers as required.
k. Monitors and makes daily work assignments, resolves daily workplace issues, and maintains efficient workflow in the clinics assigned.
l. Completes daily rounds to ensure adequate administrative support coverage in all areas distributing and balancing workload in clinic areas assigned.
m. Orients and provides on-the-job training for new and current employees as required.
n. Ensures AMSAs are well informed of management goals and directives. The incumbent will also ensure employees are informed of new procedures, instructions and techniques required in the function of the sections.
o. Responsible for working with MSAs to set up, cancel, modify, and inactivate clinics through the Clinical Requests (Group Practice Management) LEAF portal.
p. Monitors pre-appointment requirements to ensure readiness for the patient visit; perform administrative follow-up actions; evaluate patient information and clinic schedule list.
q. Monitors the Medicine Dashboard to review the status of consults, at minimum to include consults greater than 90 days, unscheduled no activity greater than 30 days linked to past appointment, and other status that require administrative/MSA action. Disseminates these tasks to the appropriate MSA.
r. Ensures accurate daily posting of employee's time assigned to specific T&L unit.
s. Other duties include but are not limited to ensuring all patient areas are covered during episodes of vacancies, annual and sick leave.
Other duties as assigned

Work Schedule: 8am-4:30pm Monday-Friday
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 00000
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Conditions of Employment


  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
  • Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
  • You may be required to serve a probationary period.
  • Subject to background/security investigation.
  • Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
  • Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
  • Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.


Qualifications

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: Citizen of the United States.
  • Experience and Education: 1) Experience. 6 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. 1 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.
  • Certification. None required.
  • Physical Requirements. Must have the mental, emotional and physical ability to satisfactorily perform the duties of the proposed assignment and pass the requisite laboratory and other screening as required by Federal regulatory agencies and meet the physical demands as described below.
  • English Language Proficiency. Must be proficient in spoken and written English.
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: GS-7

a) Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the *GS-6 grade level.

Examples of assignments and knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) at the GS-06 grade level include but are not limited to:

Assignment: Work involves specialized administrative judgment and the flexible use of a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or care in the community resources. Recommends changes to existing clinic procedures based on current administrative guidelines. Expertise in utilizing numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics involved in an interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model. Coordinates with the patient care team to review clinic appointment availability (utilization) to ensure that clinic schedules are closely monitored to effectively support the needs of the clinics, and makes adjustments as necessary. MSAs at this level develop and/or maintain effective and efficient communication with the patient, interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery model teams , VA medical centers, and other agencies (e.g., assist with communications during the inpatient to outpatient discharge; communicate with non-VA medical facilities; prepare correspondence to notify patients of normal lab results; manage a system for follow-up care such as consults, tests, etc.). Processes incoming patient secure messaging through MyHealthyVet and coordinates with care team as appropriate; participate in team huddles and team meetings to manage, plan, problem solve, and follow-up with patient care by sharing information and collaborating with the interdisciplinary team; setting priorities and deadlines, adjusting the flow and sequencing of the work to meet team and patient needs; identifies incomplete encounters and communicates findings to providers; as needed; assists the team to reinforce the plan of care and self-help solutions; enters appropriate information into the electronic record; monitors pre-appointment information and/or requirements to assure readiness for patient visit/procedure; manages patient systems to verify and validate accuracy and resolve issues; evaluates patient information and clinic schedule lists to determine whether the patient requires an immediate appointment; informs team members about shared patients, i.e., those who receive their care at multiple VA centers or those who receive care in the community.

Responsible for the coordination of Advanced MSA assignments and workflow found in an interdisciplinary unit. The Lead MSA is responsible for daily workload assessments, assigning work, and assuring proper staffing coverage; evaluating training records; and determining training needs of MSAs to provide support across interdisciplinary settings. The Lead assists the unit with complex and non-standard procedures, including clinical flow processes related to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or community resources. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: ensuring accurate and timely scheduling of appointments; providing guidance to staff members, to include changes in policies and procedures; creating and maintaining employee work schedules; and acting as a liaison among Advanced MSA staff, patients, and other interdisciplinary staff to resolve day-to-day conflicts.

c) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below:
  • Ability to collaborate and communicate with a wide range of medical clinicians across multiple disciplines (e.g. medical doctors, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, clinical pharmacists, and nursing staff) to accomplish team goal setting to ensure medical care to patients is met;
  • Ability to independently set priorities and organize work to meet deadlines, ensuring compliance with established processes, policies, and regulations;
  • Ability to communicate tactfully and effectively, electronically, by phone, in person, and in writing, with internal and external customers. This may include preparing reports in various formats and presenting data to various organizational levels, as well as resolving patient concerns.
  • Advanced knowledge of the technical health care process (including, but not limited to, scheduling across interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community models and patient health care portals) as it relates to access to care;
  • Advanced knowledge of policies and procedures associated with interdisciplinary coordinated care delivery and/or care in the community operational activities that affect patient flow, and patient support care administrative functions to include, but not limited to appointment cycles, outside patient referrals, follow-up care, overbooking, provider availability, etc;
  • Advanced knowledge of medical terminology due to the technical nature of language utilized by clinicians.

References: VA Handbook 5005/117, Part II, Appendix G45, Dated 8/1/2019.

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-7 to GS-7.

Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary. Typically, the employee sits comfortably to do the work. However, there may be some bending, walking, standing, and carrying of light items such patients' files, mail, and records. No special physical demands are required to perform the work.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/ . If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html .

Additional information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process.

Due to COVID-19, VA is currently in an expanded telework posture. If selected, you may be expected to temporarily telework, even if your home is located outside the local commuting area. Once employees are permitted to return to the office, you will be expected to report to the duty station listed on this announcement. Management officials will provide information about returning to the official, pre-pandemic worksite, when applicable. At that time, you may be eligible to request to continue to telework depending upon the terms of your organization's telework policy and the duties of the position.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application .

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