Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy
• Experience and/or Education
• Experience
• Six months of experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work
• or Education
• One year above high school that included at least 6 semester hours in health care related courses such as sterile processing, nursing assistant, hospital corpsman, and operating room and surgical technician courses or other courses related to the position
• or Experience/Education Combination
• Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable
• Certification
• None
• Grandfathering Provision
• All MSTs that are employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation
• For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply: Employees grandfathered into the GS-622 occupational series as MSTs may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journeyman) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation
• MSTs who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard
• MSTs who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation
• Foreign Education
• To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must have been submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U
• S
• programs
• May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria)
• GS-09 Supervisory Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing)-Assistant Chief Grade Determination: Experience
• One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-08) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
• In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Ability to plan and project staffing needs and requirements
• Ability to manage, interact and deal with individuals of varying backgrounds
• Ability to manage, direct and adapt work to accomplish program goals and objectives, and meet new and changing program requirements
• Ability to develop and recommend new or revised policies that are consistent with organizational goals and objectives
• Ability to perform a full range of supervisory duties, including assigning, planning and evaluating work, recommending awards, approving leave, identifying training needs, and resolving staff issues
• Ability to evaluate new products and equipment, develop options, and make recommendations
• Ability to manage, interpret, and present fiscal data (i.e
• fund controls, contracts and equipment expenditures), forecast resource and equipment needs and administer an allocated budget
• Preferred Experience: The ideal candidate would have supervisory experience including writing evaluations/appraisals in a surgical, clinical, and/or sterile processing environment
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• Physical Requirements: This work involves both administrative and physical demands and is performed in various settings: decontamination, scope reprocessing, preparation, clean sterile supply, and in other services and departments throughout the medical facility and campus including clinical / administrative office spaces
• The incumbent may be required to work in areas that are hot, cold, drafty and poorly lit
• The employee is subject to the possibility of falls, scrapes, cuts, bruises, needle sticks, and other injuries from handling equipment
• The work requires standing and walking during the entire workday and frequent bending and lifting of sterile products and packages (occasionally weighing as much as 50 pounds)
• The work requires dexterity and visual acuity for manipulating, disassembly and assembly of instrumentation
• On a regular and recurring basis, the employee alternates between a contaminated environment and a carefully controlled clean environment
• The employee wears special clothing, hair and shoe covers, and personal protective equipment (PPE) that can be uncomfortably warm
• The employee uses insulated gloves to remove carts from sterilizers
• The employee is subject to burns from accidentally touching hot items
• The hazards of working around minute quantities of sterilizing gases are unknown
• The employee often works around body fluids, mucous, excretions and bits of tissue, some of which may be foul smelling
• Strong, unpleasant odors are encountered while decontaminating bloody or grossly contaminated instrumentation or reusable medical equipment
• The work area is noisy due to the clatter of metal instruments, rumbling of carts and operation of pre-sterilizing equipment.