Summary This position is in the Point-of-Care Testing, Reference Testing and Central Processing Areas of the Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Service of the Robley Rex VA Medical Center. Incumbent performs phlebotomy duties including collection and processing of various @types of employee and patient test samples. Responsibilities The Health Technician performs phlebotomy duties including collection and processing of various @types of employee and patient test samples. Duties include, but are not limited to the following: Perform venipuncture procedure by following strict identification guidelines for patients and corresponding test orders to collect blood samples in appropriate vacutainers for wide variety of laboratory testing. Obtain other samples such as urine and stool specimens from patients for routine and specialized testing of these samples. Instruct patients in collection of such samples. Transport and deliver the collected specimens to various section of laboratory by following established guidelines for testing. Instruct patients On proper collection of semen analysis. Complete and file associated forms. Collect urine samples along with preparing required paperwork and mailing the required specimens for VA wide Employee Drug Free Program, by following strict "Chain of Custody" legal requirements. Handles body fluid specimens other than blood and urine as well as samples for Microbiology section testing and Tissue & Cytology samples for Histology section testing by following established procedures and policies. Enters all Fee Basis test result data in VISTA and file these reports in the section and handles all inquiries regarding fee basis testing reports and specimen collection. Assists the section supervisor in keeping the Fee Basis Manuals and computerized fee basis database updated with most current fee schedules and test specimen requirements. Centrifuge test specimens that require centrifugation, pour off serum or plasma samples in appropriately labeled transport tubes for refrigerator or freezer specimen storage for future testing. Accession lab orders in VISTA by entering accurate time of collection to obtain bar-code labels and accurately label all collected test specimens with required patient & test information, date and initial all collected test specimens. Prepare and process specimens for all fee basis test requests by following appropriate set criteria for corresponding reference laboratory. Other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m; may include weekends/holidays. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Health Technician (Reference & Point-of-Care Testing)/PD05061A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this 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 You may be required to serve a probationary/trial period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 08/11/2025. 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-5 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-4. 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. Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR) 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. OR, Education and Training For GS-5: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, with major study or at least 24 semester hours in subjects directly related to the position. In addition to meeting the Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR) described above, applicants must also meet the grade specific requirements listed below: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-4 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Performing phlebotomy functions such as blood and specimen collection, processing of these labs, labeling specimens for the lab, and conducting finger sticks for glucose; interpreting requests or instruction from medical or health care personnel; setting up equipment; explaining procedures to patients; lifting and transporting patients; providing general clerical/administrative support for the unit.. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, with major study or at least 24 semester hours in subjects directly related to the position.(TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. Education beyond the first 60 semester hours that is creditable toward meeting the one-year of specialized experience requirement. One full academic year of study (30 semester hours) beyond the second year is equivalent to 6 months of experience (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Specimen Collection Technical Competence Technology Application 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: There may be long periods of standing, bending, sitting or long periods of specimen processing work. There are long periods of concentration and working under pressure to accomplish desired results as rapidly as possible while maintaining accuracy and precision of work produced. 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 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. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. 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. 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.
