Health Technician - Patient Escort Services

Summary

The Health Technician is assigned to the Patient Escort Service (PES), a subsection within the Nurse Executive Office (NEO). The primary mission of The primary mission of the Health Technician PES is to provide allied support of patient care functions to active duty, reserve, and Veterans of the United States Armed Forces and allied beneficiaries receiving health care services at VAPSHCS, Seattle Division.

Duties

• Duties include but are not limited to: Manages dispatch operations; Manages high numbers of calls using multiple incoming lines. Receives and processes calls, prioritizes callers requests, delegates transport duties to personnel Patient Escort Section personnel. Ensures dispatch equipment is working properly (e.g., Checks to make sure digital phone, computer, and other communications devices are online and operating properly upon posting for dispatch duties. Deals calmly and courteously with callers to actively listen to requests, assess the situation, and provides assistance to best diffuse tense situations and assist patients. Uses Safe Patient Handling (SPH) equipment and skills to perform patient transports, transfers, lift assists, and other clinical maneuvers to render mobility assistance to patients. Transports patients receiving IV sedations, blood product transfusions, chemotherapy agents, or are on cardiac monitors in accordance with policy and regulations. Adheres to patient monitoring requirements when Transporting patients throughout the medical facility. Starts and/or adjusts gaseous flow rates (per instructions of nurses) on patients receiving oxygen (O2) or air by wall-mounted unit or e-cylinders (O2 Tanks). Transports decedents in accordance with policies to the morgue. May be required to assist medical staff with the preparation of decedents for viewing. Transports chemotherapy substances, medications, lab and blood products, and equipment in accordance with agency safety precautions. Obtains signature/initials of receiving medical staff at the point of delivery. Manages centralized dispatch operations to ensure timely and efficient dispatch of personnel to affect patient transportation needs and delivery of required resources throughout the medical facility. Transports Reusable Medical Equipment (RME) to Sterile Processing and Decontamination to be cleaned and sanitized. Returns cleaned rolling stock to respective wards, clinics, and ready-for-use staging areas. Performs periodic wash-down and sanitation of Reusable Medical Equipment (RME) per established policy and regulations. Ensures that RME is properly labeled following sanitation and before staging for use. Uses proper application of infection control practices and techniques, hand hygiene practices, body substance isolation (BSI), and personal protective equipment (PPE). Prioritizes emergency requests and dispatches personnel to respond according to the situational needs in response to deliberate requests, code calls, and other emergency requests. Utilizes Automated External Defibrillator (AED) on patients presumed to be in cardiac distress per established policy and procedures. Assists doctors and nurses managing clinical emergencies (codes) and uses Safe Patient Handling equipment and techniques to perform patient lifts, transfers, and other assistive maneuvers during emergency responses. Monitors patients (one-on-one) during transport to ensure they remain in stable condition and understand where they are going. Engages verbally with patients during transport to monitor patient's condition and to ensure that all of the patient's needs are being addressed. Explains the patient transport process to patients to ensure that they understand how to obtain mobility assistance throughout the facility or transportation arrangements when they are ready to leave. Work Schedule: 8:00am-4:30pm work schedule to be discussed during interview. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Health Technician - Patient Escort Services/PD40984A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/30/2026. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR): ALL applicants must meet the IOR as a basic requirement in order to qualify for the 0640 occupational series. Specialized Experience: 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. OR Education and Training: (For positions at the GS-4 level only): Successful completion of 2 years of study that included at least 12 semester hours in subjects related to the position. Transcripts Required) ENGLISH LANGUAGE : 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. GS-4 Qualifications: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Experience: You must have six (6) months of Generalized Experience and six (6) months of Specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-3 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. General Experience: Any type of work that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work of the position, or experience that provided a familiarity with the subject matter or processes of the broad subject area of the occupation. Examples of General Experience would typically include but are not limited to: Independently performing duties such as independently performing customer service duties. Specialized Experience: Examples of Specialized Experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Performing patient transports, transfers, lift assists, or other clinical maneuvers to render mobility assistance to patients Dispatching operations Prioritizing telephone calls Accurately annotating caller's information Providing indirect or direct patient care. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed a full 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, with major study or at least 24 semester hours in subjects directly related to the position. (Transcripts Required). OR, Combination: For GS-5 level positions, only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirements. Two full academic years of study, or 60 semester hours, beyond the second year is equivalent to l year of specialized experience. (Transcripts Required) 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/.

Requirements

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 Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. 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 identification 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) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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 probationary period period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Education

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include the initial online questionnaire and submission of the required documentation specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. To preview the application questionnaire, click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13052123. The application process is as follows: To begin, click Apply Online to create a USA JOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation. Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date, 09/30/2026. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBS you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. Set aside at least 3 hours to take the USA Hire Assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. NOTE: Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources at https://support-usahire.opm.gov/hc/en-us. To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To view the announcement status or your application status: https://help.usajobs.gov/how-to. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application. Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. Helpful Hints for Creating a Two-Page Resume: Prioritize most relevant and recent experience Use concise, results focused language Align language from the job announcement Focus on demonstrating skills and competencies Remove outdated or unrelated experience Use the USAJOBS resume builder Additional guidance on this new requirement and resume building tools can be found at https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/page-limit.