Summary This position is located in the Sterile Processing Service at the VA Boston Healthcare System West Roxbury, MA location. This position is full-time at 40 hours per week. Responsibilities The Supervisory Medical Supply Technician functions as a first-level supervisor responsible for the oversight of a group of Medical Supply Technicians, with administrative responsibility for planning and directing the work. Duties include, but are not limited to: Responsible for the direct supervision of day-to-day operations in SPS, regardless of tour of duty, including reusable medical device (RMD) reprocessing for all clinical services In conjunction with the SPS Educator, responsible for operational deployment of a comprehensive training program for all SPS staff Directly oversees the work of employees under their supervision, orients new employees.to their duties, validates competencies of employees, identifies equipment requirements, and recommends methods to improve the quality and productivity of the service Completes training coursework and VA SPS certifications as required Maintains certification by completing approved, annual Continuing Education Units (CEU) and annual in-service hours Plans work to be accomplished by subordinates, sets and adjusts short term priorities and Prepares schedules for completion of work and to alleviate halt points in reprocessing activities Assigns work to subordinates based on priorities, selective consideration of the difficulty and requirements of assignments, staff designation as competent to complete and task, and the capability of the employee Identifies developmental and training needs of employees, providing for and arranging for needed development and training Finds ways to improve production or increase the quality of work directed, and assists in development of performance standards Establishes guidelines and performance expectations for staff, which are clearly communicated through the formal employee performance management system Provides informal feedback and evaluates employee performance Resolves informal complaints and grievances. Develops work improvement plans, recommending personnel actions as necessary Provides advice and counsel to workers related to technical work and administrative matters. Collaborates with SPS Leadership, SPS/OR Liaison Nurse, Logistics, RMD Coordinators, Operating Room/Surgical Service leadership, and all Service Line stakeholders in the process of procurement of all newly purchased and leased instrumentation and ensures RMD can be effectively reprocessed per MIFUs before use on patients Participates in Interview Panels and makes recommendations regarding hiring decisions Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 2:30pm-11:00pm Tour hours are subject to change. Weekends, holidays and other tour coverage required as per departmental needs. Cross campus coverage will be required 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 #: F04342 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Notifications: -This position is covered by a special rate. -This position is not covered by Bargaining Unit. -Due to a critical staffing shortage, 38 U.S.C. § 7412 waives the requirement to apply Veterans' preference for this job announcement. -Veterans' preference does not apply for internal or other current permanent Federal agency employees. -Current and former Federal employees must submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action). The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure and @type of service (Competitive or Excepted). In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held. -Narrative responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) may be required from the selectee in order to proceed with the appointment. 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. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. 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). Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. 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: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Experience and/or Education: (1) Experience. Six months of experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work; or (2) Education. One year above high school that included at least 6 semester hours in health care related courses such as sterile processing, nursing assistant, hospital corpsman, and operating room and surgical technician courses or other courses related to the position; or (3) Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable. Grade Determinations: GS-08 Supervisory Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) (a) Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level GS-7. Examples of specialized experience include but are not limited to: Distributing and prioritizing workload among employees in accordance with established workflow and/or job specializations; assuring an even workflow and distribution of the workload; revising work schedules to meet anticipated and unanticipated changes in the workload; assigning work to staff based on experience and training needs; monitoring and reporting on the status of work; reviewing work in progress or spot checking work not requiring review to ensure completed work meets supervisors' instructions on such things as work sequence, procedures, methods, and deadlines; assessing the quality and quantity of work by reviewing the cleaning, reprocessing, and distribution of technical medical equipment, material and instrumentation. (b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: 1. Ability to manage, interact and deal with individuals of varying backgrounds. 2. Ability to direct staff and manage tasks to be completed. 3. Ability to oversee and supervise all aspects of decontamination, preparation, sterilization, monitoring, and distribution of RME. 4. Ability to perform a full range of supervisory duties, including assigning, planning and evaluating work, recommending awards, approving leave, identifying training needs, and resolving staff issues. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-08. 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. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. 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. 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.
