Summary The Surgical Technician (ST) is a member of the surgical team and provides assistance to the surgeon and other team members during surgical procedures. The Surgical Technician participates with the surgical team members in planning and implementing the complex procedures under the general supervision of the surgical team. Responsibilities Duties include, but are not limited to: Planning, directing, and performing administrative activities of assigned clinic to relieve the professional staff. Managing the overall operation of the Specialty Clinic and provides assistance to the surgeon and other team members during surgical procedures in the clinic as well as in the Operating Room. Preparing, organizing and maintaining the cleanliness and proper working condition of all highly complex sterile surgical setups/equipment. Stocking an adequate level of non-sterile and sterile supplies. Assisting in developing the budget by maintaining pertinent information, considering trends, and projecting future needs of the specialty clinic in terms of equipment and supplies. Receiving new consults and assisting in making appointments for patients to be examined. Preparing monthly reports for the specialty clinic as well as monthly chart audits for quality assurance. Utilzling universal precautions and following all infection control policies and procedures when handling critical and noncritical reusable medical equipment, specimens, and supplies. Providing patient care that is appropriate to the cognitive, emotional, and chronological maturation needs of the adult and/or geriatric patient. Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday - Friday, 7:00am - 3:30pm, subject to change based on the needs of the facility. Position Description Title/PD#: Surgical Technician/PD06001A Physical Requirements: This is a mentally and physically demanding position. Duties regularly require providing manual assistance in lifting and positioning patients, most of which are in stages of unconsciousness. There are extensive periods of regular and recurring standing, walking, bending, lifting, pushing, reaching, and prolonged stretching to provide easy accessibility of instruments and supplies for the surgeon-both within the clinic and operating room. Incumbent must be dexterous in passing instruments to surgeons without compromising principles of aseptic technique and in a manner requiring little or no effort from the surgeon. Total Rewards Brochure: WMC Total Rewards - PowerApps Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Individual Occupational Requirement: Applicants who meet the Individual Occupational Requirements described below are fully qualified for the specified entry grade and must also meet the specialized experience 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. In addition to meeting the above Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR), applicants must also meet the experience relevant to this position. GS-07 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-06 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes: serving as a preceptor mentor to include providing training and guidance to other staff; responsible for preparation and set up of sterile field for surgical case; perform OR inventory, decontamination, and sterilization tasks; prepare and process instrument trays, sterile drapes, and solutions according to surgical procedure; perform as a team member; perform duties that involve manual dexterity, communicating with other, and flexibility to adjust to changes while performing work tasks; responsible for inventory and maintain count control of all used sponges, needles and other equipment employed within surgeries. 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. Education There is no educational substitution for the GS-07 level. 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 (TJO). Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP), va.gov/EMPLOYEE/docs/The-Fair-Chance-to-Compete-Act.pdf for more information. The following will be communicated to applicants for VA employment in a testing designated position and will also be included in all VA vacancy announcements for such positions: All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drugs use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. 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 well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors if applicable, and must be proficient in most of the requirements of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website which can be found at https://www.opm.gov/. Receiving Service Credit for 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.
