Work in Washington Veterans Jobs

Summary Employee will serve as a Lead Medical Technician - Phlebotomist within the Pathology and Laboratory Service located at the Veterans Healthcare System in Spokane, WA. Responsibilities THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION Duties will include, but may not be limited to the following: Coordinates the daily blood specimen collection workload, includes delegating assignments to staff and scheduling staff, as well as for weekend and holiday coverage for blood collections. Investigates and resolves problematic issues regarding blood collections and patient satisfaction. Serves as the training coordinator responsible for training phlebotomy students and new employees. Develops and administers effective training program and instructions in phlebotomy techniques, safety procedures, specimen handling, and processing. Makes procedural manuals available. Performs competency assessments for personnel and provides documentation of training activities to meet the various accrediting agency requirements (JCAHO, CAP, FDA, OSHA). Develops and maintains an on-going, effective supply inventory programs to ensure adequate specimen collection supplies are available to meet workload demands. Ensures patient specimens are collected, transported, processed, and accessioned properly. Collects workload data from a variety of sources, reviews the data, and prepares and submits reports that includes work section accomplishments and produces quality improvement to the supervisor on a regular basis. Resolves minor informal staff complaints; reports to supervisor instances of employee performance standards, employee recognition awards, and disciplinary problems. Performs as a working Lead, collecting blood specimens using a variety of phlebotomy techniques including vacutainer systems, syringe, and butterfly apparatus; processes routine and STAT reference laboratory specimens. Follows procedures when dealing with patient medical emergencies. Applies knowledge of the principles, techniques, practices of phlebotomy, hemostasis, and requirements for blood collection. Adheres to all universal precautions, infection control and safety regulations associated with collection and processing of blood and body fluids. Responsible for the monitoring, maintenance, and cleanliness of all refrigerators/freezers in the lab. Maintains logs to document the temperature of each device, and reports deviations to supervisor. Performs other duties as necessary. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 9:30am - 6:00pm, includes rotating shifts, weekends, and/or holiday coverage DESIGNATED DRUG-TESTING POSITION: 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. Applicants will not be appointed to the position if a verified positive drug test result is received. Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved 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 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) Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. Qualifications ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY: 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 meet the requirements of this position. AND SELECTIVE PLACEMENT FACTOR (SCREEN-OUT) - A Selective Placement Factor (SPF) has been identified for this position. Selective Placement Factors (SPF) are a prerequisite to appointment and represent minimum requirements for the position. Applicants who do not meet the SPF are ineligible for further consideration. The SPF for this position is: Experience performing phlebotomy/blood draws on human patients. Experience must be clearly documented in your resume to receive credit. In addition to the Language Proficiency and the Selective Placement Factor, applicant must meet at least one of the following minimum qualification requirements to qualify SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Requires at least One full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-5 grade level in Federal service performing technical medical laboratory support work such as: performing laboratory tests and examinations (chemical, microbiologic, hematologic and blood banking) and preparing reports of findings; or technical support work in a closely related field, e.g., biological laboratory technician work that required application of the methods and techniques for the position to be filled. Experience must be clearly documented in your resume to receive credit. OR SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED): Successful completion of at least one-half year of graduate level education (9 semester hours above a bachelor's degree) or an internship in course matter directly related to the work of the position such as chemistry, biological sciences, hematology, microbiology, serology, etc. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. OR COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED): An equivalent combination of successfully completed graduate level education and specialized experience, as described above, which meet the total experience requirements for this grade level. The education portion must include graduate courses directly related to the work of this Medical Technician position and must have been obtained in an accredited college or university. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Computer Skills Customer Service (Clerical/Technical) Patient Care Quality Assurance Specimen Collection IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. 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. 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; religious; 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. PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: The work requires extensive and recurring physical exertion such as standing for long periods of time, bending, lifting, walking, stooping, repetitive motions, and stretching. The work requires duty on weekends, holidays, and nights when so assigned. This position is also considered high risk because of the constant exposure to blood and fluid products, sharps, and chemicals, and patients in isolation rooms due to communicable disease. 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 IMPORTANT: 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: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov). Additional Information This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. 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.