Summary This position Is located at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago, Illinois, working in Emergency Room/Emergency Department. The primary purpose of this position is to assist in the care and treatment of emergency room patients and administer emergent care to patients both In the Emergency Room and throughout the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center under the supervision of the doctors and nurses. Responsibilities Major Duties: Interviews and screens patients for life threatening injuries or illnesses. Obtains vital signs (e.g., blood pressure, pulse, temperature, and respirations, weight, height and/or orthostatic vital signs), Accu-Checks blood sugars/glucose monitoring. Interview skills to obtain chief compliant and history of present illness, past pertinent patient health/medication history. Perform sterile procedures to include, but not limited to urinary catheter placement (indwelling and/or straight-catheter. Conducts point-of-care blood sugar testing using finger-stick technique or drawing from intravenous access site for continuous glucose monitoring or baseline testing, collection of blood and specimen laboratory tests, splinting, wound care, cerumen impaction removal, eye irrigation, orthopedic immobilization, and cervical spinal stabilization. Collects, labels, and transports patient specimens to include, venous blood, urine, stool/stool guaiac, throat cultures, wound, and mucous specimens. Irrigates, cleans, and dresses wounds maintaining sterile and clean fields. Manually assists with lifting and positioning of patients; assists wheelchair-bound and patients with impaired ambulation out of vehicles. Cleans and prepares patients, room, supplies, and equipment for use in emergent procedures and prepares specimens for transport to laboratory. Cleans and resupplies exam rooms in between patient uses. Proficient in electronic charting, computer, and windows programs, telephone etiquette, answering and receiving telephone calls, and paging duty personnel. Work Schedule: Compressed tour 12 nights 7:15 pm - 7:45 am with rotation to include weekends and holidays Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Health Technician/PD24008A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. 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) - See "Required Documents" below for details. 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 To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/24/2024. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Individual Occupational Requirements Specialized Experience (for positions at GS-4 and above): Positions in this series range widely in type and include support duties to medical or health personnel such as audiologists, speech pathologists, medical officers, and optometrists. Therefore, technician experience is experience that required application of the knowledge, methods, and techniques of the position to be filled. Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-5 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience requiring application of the knowledge, methods, and techniques related to the position and includes, but is not limited to: performing duties for a medical practice, assisting in the treatment of an emergency room setting, providing patient education, and documenting patient data. OR, Education: Successfully completed one-half year of graduate education (9 semester hours or equivalent), in course matter with a major that included courses directly related to the work of the Health Technician position. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. (Transcripts Required). 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 successfully completed one-half year of graduate education (9 semester hours or equivalent), in course matter with a major that included courses directly related to the work of the Health Technician position? This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. (Transcripts Required). You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:Clinical Data Collection/Documentation, Communication, Computer Skills, Emergency Care, Patient Care, Specimen Collection, Teamwork, and Work Practices 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 a level of physical fitness that allows for standing for extended periods, heavy lifting to position patients, and manual dexterity to perform clinical procedures. The work will require recurrent bending, lifting, stooping, standing, squatting, stretching, sitting and walking. 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/. Education 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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information "Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act." Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. 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. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.