Lead Medical Support Assistant - Primary Care ICC
What you'd do
The Lead Medical Support Assistant serves in the Primary Care, Integrated Clinical Communities (ICC) Department. The incumbent performs clerical and administrative support in the coordination, care, and treatment provided to patients throughout the department in the Fargo VA Health Care System (VAHCS). The Lead MSA is responsible for the coordination of Advanced MSA assignments and workflow found in an interdisciplinary unit.
Major duties
VA Careers - Medical Support Assistant: https://youtube.com/embed/EE9c4XkaELo Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional 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.Major duties include (but not limited to): Assists the unit with complex and non-standard procedures, including clinical flow processes related to access to care across multiple departmental areas. Ensure accurate and timely scheduling of appointments. Provide guidance to staff members to include changes in policies and procedures. Create and maintaining employee work schedules. Perform duties as a liaison among AMSA staff, patients and other interdisciplinary staff to resolve day-to-day conflicts. Possesses advanced knowledge of medical terminology and a wide range of clinical flow processes. Exhibits the ability to utilize numerous advanced patient systems. Demonstrates the ability to organize work, set priorities, and delegate tasks/responsibilities in order to meet deadlines. Skill in communicating with individuals to obtain the desired effect. Provide staff development and training. Manage staffing requirements, workflow priorities, and adjust the flow of work to meet team and patient needs. Follow-up on pending issues and demonstrate an understanding of the impact of incomplete work across multiple clinics. Other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 40 hours per week, 8:00am to 4:30pm Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not authorized. Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized. Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade). 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 #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized.
What you need to qualify
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 11:59 PM (ET) on 08/10/2026. Medical Support Assistant Basic Requirements: Citizenship: Citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance to 38 U.S.C. § 7407(a). Experience and Education: Experience: No experience required. OR Education: High school diploma, General Education Development equivalency certificate, or proficiency certificate from a State or territorial-level Board or Department of Education. Licensure/Certification/Registration: None. Grandfathering Provision: Employees in VHA in this occupation, under a permanent, appropriate, and legal placement on the effective date of the qualification standard, are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade and/or assignment held, including positive education and registration/certification where applicable. For employees who do not meet all the basic or assignment-specific requirements in this standard but met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed, the following provisions apply: Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard. Employees retained in this occupation under this provision who subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation. NOTE: This provision is not intended to regularize appointments/placements. Foreign Education: To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must have been submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service for requirements. English Language Proficiency: Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). Grade Determinations: Creditable Experience: To be creditable, the experience must have demonstrated the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) associated with current MSA responsibilities or an equivalent administrative patient support role in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting. Experience satisfying this requirement may be paid/non-paid employment as an MSA or an equivalent position in a non-VA hospital or clinic setting. Part-Time Experience: Part-time experience as an MSA or equivalent administrative patient support in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting is creditable according to its relationship for the full-time workweek. For example, an MSA employed 20 hours a week, or on a 1/2-time basis, would receive one full-time workweek of credit for each two weeks of service. Quality of Experience: Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to MSA experience or equivalent administrative clinical support role in a non-VA medical inpatient or outpatient setting at the next lower grade level. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty), and range of varieties as described in this standard, at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. In addition to meeting the Basic Requirements, candidates must possess the required specialized experience and be able to demonstrate all Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) as summarized below. GS-6 Grade Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-6 grade level. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: 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. 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. AND GS-7 Grade Experience. Candidates must demonstrate all of the KSAs below: Advanced knowledge of medical terminology and a wide range of clinical flow processes relating to access to care across multiple clinics, specialties, and/or community. Skill in communicating with individuals to obtain the desired effect and coordinating with a variety of interdisciplinary care team staff. Ability to utilize numerous advanced patient systems in support of multiple clinics in an interdisciplinary setting. Ability to organize work, set priorities, and delegate tasks/responsibilities in order to meet deadlines. Ability to provide staff development and training. Ability to manage staffing requirements, manage workflow priorities, and adjust the flow of work to meet team and patient needs. This includes the ability to follow-up on pending issues and demonstrate an understanding of the impact of incomplete work across multiple clinics. References: Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHCO) website for VA specific qualification standards: VA Qualification Standards - Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHCO). The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-7 Physical Requirements: The position requires no special physical demands, but will require some physical effort such as standing, walking, bending, and sitting. You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.
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