Health Technician - North Chicago, United States - Department of Veterans Affairs

Description

Summary

This position is located in the Inpatient Geriatrics Service, Office of the Nurse Executive located at the Captain James A Lovell Federal Health Care Center (FHCC) in North Chicago, Illinois.

This position is for the "Green House" homes. The Green House home is organized around the needs and lives of elders who live there.

The duty of the of this position is to protect, to nurture, to sustain the elder, to maintain the safety and cleanliness of the environment and providing high quality care.

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Overview

• Accepting applications
• Open & closing dates

12/28/2023 to 06/28/2024

• Salary

$49,249 - $71,148 per year

• Pay scale & grade

GS - 7

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Location

Many vacancies in the following location:

• North Chicago, IL
• Remote job

No

• Telework eligible

No

• Travel Required

Not required

• Relocation expenses reimbursed

No

• Appointment type

Permanent -* Work schedule

Full-time -* Service

Competitive

• Promotion potential

7

• Job family (Series)

0640 Health Aid And Technician

• Supervisory status

No

• Security clearance

Other

• Drug test

Yes

• Position sensitivity and risk

Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

• Trust determination process

Suitability/Fitness

• Announcement number

CAZP FSW

• Control number

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This job is open to

• The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Clarification from the agency


ALL US CITIZENS

DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY:
This position is being filled using Direct-Hire Authority (5 CFR for this occupation.

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Duties

The incumbent will rotate the roles of coordinator duties in such areas as Team Coordinator, Scheduling Coordinator, and Care Coordinator, etc.

This announcement can be used to fill any Green House shifts.

Duties include, but are not limited to:

Acting as a liaison between the team and families, volunteers, community members and other members of the staff including clinical support team.

Conducting team meetings and communicates decisions to team members and others.

Collaborating with clinical support team to schedule treatment planning conferences.

Planning menus with the residents for regular and modified diets.

Forecasting food usage requirements in order to orders food and expendable supplies for one week out from service date.

Meeting regularly with clinical dietitian to review menus and communicates weight loss and food concerns to the appropriate members of the Clinical Support Team.

Insuring all areas of the residence, indoors and outdoors, are clean and presentable.

Coordinates housekeeping, sanitation, and laundry duties.

Collaborating with the Clinical Support Team and others to ensure care planning meetings are held in a timely manner.

Monitoring the team's compliance with elders' care plans.

Insuring that care has been provided.

Performing comprehensive nursing care for medical, long term care, and/or dementia residents in the rehabilitative process.

The Universal Worker plans, organizes and conducts therapeutic recreational activities at all times to include; weekends, holidays, evening and nights as appropriate.

Responsible for transporting residents to various appointments and/or events.

Promotion Potential:

The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met.

Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level.

Work Schedule:
Days, PM, Nights with rotation on weekends and holidays


Compressed/Flexible:
Available


Telework:
Not Available


Virtual:
This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#:
Health Technician (Home Health)/PD06386A


Relocation/Recruitment Incentives:
Not Authorized


Financial Disclosure Report:
Not required

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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
• 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

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/28/2024.

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-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. 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.

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.

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.

GS-06 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-05 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:

Observing patients physical and emotional response to medical care to recognize deviations from the normal aging process and applies knowledge of basic first-aid principles in responding to situations.

Labeling and arranging completed food items following HACCP guidelines for receiving, preparing, storing, and transporting food as needed. Performing cleaning tasks such as washing walls, doors, door frames, baseboard corners and edges; sweeping, moping, and vacuuming.

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:

Experience utilizing direct patient care techniques, including ADLs, ambulating patients, infection control, and emergency response, using appropriate safety precautions.

Preparing and serving food for consumption; performing a range of cooking to include but not limited to roasting, braising, and boiling.

Using modified diet and correct food portions to serve patients and answer routine questions concerning patient diet.

Documenting patient treatment and goals such as medical history, vital signs, chief complaints, allergies, pertinent health problems, current medications for the purpose of communicating with the staff nurses and patient families.

Using appropriate cleaning agents and germicidal solutions to remove stains from a wide variety of surfaces to provide bacteriological safe environment.

Graduate education (Masters level) may be used to substitute for specialized experience only in those instances where it is directly related to the work of the position.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Clinical Data Collection/Documentation
• Customer Service (Clerical/Technical)
• Food Service
• Patient Care
• Work Practices

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:
Duties require extensive periods of standing and walking.

Workings with residents require regular and recurring bending, lifting (not to exceed 40 pounds), and stooping, stretching and similar activities.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

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.

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:
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:
Additional information

This occupation is currently approved for a Veterans Health Administration enterprise-wide Critical Skills Incentive through [insert date].

Candidates may be eligible for a lump sum CSI for a pro-rated amount if onboard prior to the CSI expiration date.

Eligible candidates will be required to sign a service agreement agreeing to an obligated service period and failure to complete the obligated service period may result in a debt for the unearned portion of the CSI.

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.

Special Employment Consideration:
VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/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

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

Pursuant to VHA Directive , 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.

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• Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.

As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.

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Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent.

Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Applicants will be referred in the order in which they were received.