Health Technician

Summary

The Health Technician works as a member of the Nursing - Inpatient Medical/Surgical and Critical Care Team. This position is assigned to the Emergency Department (ED) area within Patient Care Services. The Health Technician assists medical and nursing staff through technical - specialized or support services for the diagnosing or treatment of patient illnesses or medical conditions.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement - 05/12/2026. 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-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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 Occupation Requirement: 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. English Language Proficiency Requirement: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d) - No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English. You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to perform the duties of this position. In addition to the above requirements - in order to qualify for this position at the GS-6 level - you must meet one of the following minimum qualifications: Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-05 grade level in Federal service that has required application of the knowledge - methods - and techniques of this position. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include: performing both clerical and clinical duties in a medical/healthcare environment; answering and directing phone calls; scheduling appointments; documenting medical records; taking and recording vital signs; using diagnostic and therapeutic medical instruments and equipment; and collecting and labeling specimens. Familiarity with obtaining vital signs and providing information to nursing staff. Knowledge of infection control principles - safety - and universal precautions. Experience with demonstrating appropriate behavior - effective therapeutic communication and interpersonal skills. This experience must be detailed in your resume to receive credit. OR - Education: Half a year of graduate education (usually 9 semester hours) that is directly related to the work of this position. One full year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent one year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school - 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the one year of full-time study requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. Transcripts required. ~OR - Combination: An equivalent combination of specialized experience and graduate education as described that demonstrates your ability to perform the duties of this position. Transcripts required - and experience must be detailed in your resume to receive credit. Preferred: 1-2 years of Health Technician experience 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: This position requires visual acuity - keen hearing - clear distinctive speech - and manual dexterity. This position requires an ongoing mix of potentially long-periods of continued walking - standing - stooping - sitting - bending - pulling - pushing - and reaching overhead. All patient care activities require PC keyboard and mouse use for data entry in the electronic patient record. occasional heavy lifting will be required. Particularly for patient transfers. Incumbent may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don protective clothing in isolation situations or operative - invasive procedures. Incumbent may occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative - In some instances interaction with patients - caregivers and staff can become intense - and the employee may be placed in a position of stress. Incumbent must be a mature - flexible - sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations - able to shift priorities based on patient needs. NOTE: Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a condition of employment and a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who - during the influenza season - work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include - but are not limited to - VA hospitals and associated clinics - community living centers (CLCs) - community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs) - domiciliary units - Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed - clinical and administrative - remote and onsite - paid and without compensation - full- and part-time employees - intermittent employees - fee basis employees - VA contractors - researchers - volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents - interns - fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities. For more information on these qualification standards - please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

Duties

• Major duties and responsibilities include - but are not limited to: Supports professional - licensed providers - both nurses and physicians in designated clinical area using diagnostic and therapeutic medical instruments and equipment to perform non-invasive Electrocardiograms and Bladder Scans according to established procedures
• Applies basic orthopedic splints and performs dressing changes in designated areas
• Performs phlebotomy in designated areas
• Performs Point of Care (POC) testing using glucometer and I-Stat devices and CLIA-waived testing as authorized - according to established unit procedures
• Documents treatments - procedures - and/or telemetry identification conducted by the incumbent in the electronic medical record
• Provides non-professional medical and technical support to professional staff during diagnosis and treatment of patients
• Recognizes and informs appropriate multidisciplinary health care team of deviations from baseline screening parameters
• Prepares and sets up equipment - etc. - for procedures performed by licensed providers - including laceration repair - chest tube insertion - lumbar puncture - etc
• Assists professional - licensed providers - including nursing staff and physicians - in the care and treatment of the critically ill and those with emergent needs
• Observes and reports to the provider changes in patient behavior - attitude - bodily complaints - and appearance
• Performs standardized treatment procedures requiring considerable training and experience such as performing pharyngeal (mouth cavity) suctions - setting up pulse oximetry - and observing cardiac waveforms
• obtains - reads - measures - and interprets electrocardiogram monitoring
• Identifies life-threatening dysrhythmias
• activates the appropriate codes and/or steps required to call for definitive help
• initiates appropriate action according to established procedures
• Performs Basic Life Support - including the operation of the Automated External Defibrillator (or equivalent)
• applicable protocols are observed
• Performs procedures as indicated and pre-authorized - through prior competency assessment
• Utilizes the paging system - answers phones and call lights
• Provides non-professional nursing care to patients experiencing extremes of behavior on a regular and recurring basis
• Intervenes when patients express or display suicidal ideation by utilizing techniques per established procedures to keep the patient safe - and maintain personal safety - while awaiting assistance
• Performs constant observation for high-risk patients and follows procedures to ensure safety of room environment - maintaining line-of-sight visual surveillance - and reporting changes in patient behavior to the professional nursing staff member(s)
• Performs a wide variety of duties aimed at increasing the comfort and spirit of the patient
• Transports patients via wheelchair or gurney - accompanying ambulatory patients who need assistance reporting to various areas within the hospital including clinics - diagnostic areas - and treatment areas in the absence of - or non-availability - of medical escort staff
• Performs simple personal care duties such as bathing - oral - nail - and hair care
• Assists patients with physical limitations such as swallowing disorders with meals
• Assists patients with toileting needs - providing incontinent care as necessary
• Performs basic personal nursing care that requires knowledge of standardized procedures such as performance of active/passive range-of-motion activities - ensuring that catheters and oxygen cannula - etc. - remain intact
• Assists with application of protective devices such as soft restraints - padded mitts - side rails - etc
• as necessary - per established procedures
• Identifies physical - social - psychological - and cultural needs of patients by applying relevant growth and development processes specific to the age of the patient - as well as direct communication as the patient is able
• Empowers patients and their families - encouraging them to acknowledge and address personal healthcare issues and embrace recommended follow up and self-care
• Performs administrative tasks and manages various support functions such as maintaining control records for specimens - tests - and documenting measurements taken
• Initiates work orders - following up to ensure the work is completed
• Orders and maintains supplies for the unit
• Coordinates with Medical Support Assistants to ensure patient tracking is initiated during check-in - scheduling of appointments for procedures - provider evaluations - etc. - from other services
• Work Schedule: 7:30am-8:00pm (6 shifts per pay period) - and 7:30am-4:00pm (1 shift per pay period) with rotating weekend/holidays Compressed/Flexible: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position
• Position Description/PD#: Health Technician/PD92902A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.

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