Summary The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Intermediate Care Technician (ICT) Program is aprogram designed to hire transitioning service, National Guard, Reserve, and Veterancorpsmen, combat medics and medical technicians into positions at VA Medical Centers asan integral part of the medical team. Candidates generally qualify based on U.S. ArmedForces experience or equivalent education. Responsibilities This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until September 30, 2024. The initial cut-off date for referral of eligible applications will be September 27, 2024 with subsequent cut-off dates bi-weekly. Eligible applications received after that date will be referred at regular intervals or as additional vacancies occur on an as-needed basis until positions are filled. VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2022/12/Total-Reward-of-a-Allied-Health-Professions-VA-Career-11-4-2022.pdfThe Intermediate Care Technician is an occupational specialty, especially for former military combat medics, medical technicians, and corpsmen. As an ICT, you will operate within clearly defined clinical competencies. For the purposes of this national job announcement, you may work in multiple clinical settings based on facility needs, these include but are not limited to, Emergency Medicine, Critical Care, Primary Care, Specialty Clinics, Women's health and COVID Screening, Swabbing Stations, and Vaccine Operations.The clinical activities for the hospital will include but are not limited to: Performing observation-based screening and collecting patient information in collaboration with licensed personnel, this may involve completing clinical reminders, obtaining patient health history, chief complaints, medication history, and identification of health- related conditions that may impact the patient's health status. Completing approved templates and tools, such as, intake/outtake forms, normal result note follow up, clinical reminders, procedure and intervention notes established by the agency. Assisting in behavioral/psychiatric situations in an outpatient setting. This can include assisting licensed personnel with crisis intervention, management of aggressive or suicidal psychiatric patients, by providing one-to-one observations and applying prevention and management of disruptive behavior techniques (PMDB). Assists licensed staff with the delivery of care to patients with complex, specialized, and potentially life-threatening situations. You will assist licensed staff with setting up equipment and providing treatment during in person or virtual visits. Operating specialized medical equipment to obtain diagnostic and therapeutic outcomes. Observes patient status and keeps licensed clinical staff informed of any change in condition. You will assist clinical providers with emergency medical care, provides emergency response as part of the Rapid-Response-Team (RRT), and assists with training of other hospital clinical staff. Performing Diagnostic Tests. Examples: Vital Signs, 12-lead electrocardiogram (EKG) Point-of-Care. Examples: glucometer, COVID swabbing Specimen collection and Preparation. Examples: collecting and labeling venous blood samples Minor Procedures. Examples: simple one-layer laceration repairs, incision and drainage, skin stapling, STERIS trips, Dermabond Medication Administration: nebulized medications, topical, limited PO meds, vaccine administration Wound Care. Examples. wound debridement, Wet-to-Dry dressings, Unna Boot placement, compression dressings- Forflex and Profour, wound vac placement, graft application Patient education within scope of care or while providing an intervention Electronic Health Record (EHR): Thoroughly and appropriately documents actions, interventions and procedures in the medical record. Examples: Procedural notes and progress notes Work Schedule: Monday - Friday; 8:00am - 4:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Intermediate Care Technician/PD99968S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the 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 Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Required Documents" below for details. 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 To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/30/2024. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Experience: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-6 grade level in the federal service). Examples of specialized experience include but are not limited to: Prepare and administer medications through various methods, examples include, intramuscular injections, subcutaneous injections, intradermal injections, oral, aerosolized including oxygen, topical, intraocular (eye drops), Otic (ear drops), intranasal, rectal (suppositories), local anesthetics, intraurethral, and intravenous. Perform minor surgical procedures, medical interventions and administer treatments to manage care to combat disease or disabling symptoms example incise and drain various skin infections or abscesses. Order appropriate diagnostic studies under the direction of the supervising Licensed Independent Practitioner (LIP) obtains and Reports Diagnostic and laboratory results. Your experience must be detailed in your resume to receive full credit. OR Education: One full year of graduate education meets the requirements for GS-7 only in those instances where it is directly related to the work of the position. (Transcripts Required) English Language Proficiency: Individuals serving in direct patient care positions must be proficient in both spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d). Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Practical knowledge of major body systems Working knowledge of topographic anatomy Working knowledge of diagnostic signs Knowledge of protocol-approved list of medications Working knowledge of emergency medicine techniques and emergency communication Knowledge sufficient to understand the legal considerations of emergency medicine Working knowledge of acute and chronic mental health conditions and crises Preferred Qualifications: Experience in the military as a Hospital Corpsman, Combat Medic, Medical Technician is highly desired.Examples of military occupational specialties highly desired, include but are not limited to: 4NOX- Basic Medical Technician, 4NOIC- Independent Duty Medical Technician, X4NO- Aeromedical Evacuation Technician, 1T2X1- Pararescueman, 68W- Combat Medic Specialist, 18D- Army Special Forces (Medic), 68WW1- Special Operations Flight Medic, HM0000- Basic Hospital Corpsman, HM8404- Field Medical Service Technician, HM8425- Surface Force Independent Duty Corpsman, HM8402- Submarine Force Independent Duty Corpsman, HM8401- Search and Rescue Medical Technician, HM8403- Fleet Marine Force Reconnaissance Independent Duty Corpsman, HM8406- Aerospace Medical Technician, and HS- Basic Health Services Technician. 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: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application. 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 "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." 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. 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. 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. 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 qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.