Health Technician in Big Spring, Texas

Summary The position is in the MHRRTP, a Mental Health Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Program that provides extended care to Veterans for mental health needs, substance abuse treatment, Compensated Work Therapy, and homelessness. The MHRRTP Technicians provides 7 day/week, 24-hour/day coverage. The MHRRTP Technician performs both clinical and administrative duties. Responsibilities Responsible for developing and maintaining a therapeutic professional helping relationship with Residents admitted to the MHRRTP. Provides orientation to new Residents by explaining MHRRTP policies/procedures, treatment expectations and goals. Interviews each Resident to assess skills associated activities of daily living, leisure and work interests, personal hygiene, interpersonal communication, etc. Maintains close contact with Residents to ensure that their behavior and social adjustments are satisfactory. Demonstrates the ability to work with Residents who have a variety of physical, mental, emotional, and behavior issues using approved care techniques. Appropriately identifies or resolves Resident s concerns or refers them to staff with specific administrative or clinical expertise. Remains accessible to Residents and serves as a role model for appropriate behavior. Treats Residents, staff, and visitors in a courteous, professional, and positive manner. Uses good judgment, tact and discretion in dealing with Residents who have difficulty conforming to acceptable standards or complying with requirements for acceptable adjustment to MHRRTP living. Provides crisis intervention in situations of a medical, psychiatric and/or behavioral emergency. Receives telephone calls from beneficiaries, relatives, friends, other VA facilities, service organizations, community agencies, etc. relating to Residents under his/her supervision and may provide information in accordance with HIPAA guidelines, the Privacy Act, and as stated in the Medical Care System Memoranda on Automatic Information System (AIS) Security Policy. Responsible for ensuring a clean, safe, and healthy environment for all Residents and staff to include housekeeping and sanitation, security safety, repair and maintenance of rooms, ramps, and areas surrounding the buildings. Work Schedule: 7:30 AM – 8 PM; 7:30 PM – 8 AM (12 hours shifts). Rotating shifts including evenings, nights, weekends and holidays. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Health Technician/PD01152A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Physical Requirements: Work is carried out in a 24/7 residential treatment setting serving a population of male and female Veterans ranging from the adult, age 18, to the elderly adult, age 65 and over. This position requires potentially long periods of continued walking, standing, stooping, sitting, bending, pulling, and pushing, twisting, climbing stairs, climbing ladders, simple grasping, reading above shoulder. Transferring patients and/or objects 6 may be required. The incumbent may be exposed to infected patients and contaminated materials and may be required to don PPE. The incumbent may occasionally be exposed to patients who are combative due to psychiatric disorders. The incumbent must be a mature, flexible, sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations, able to shift priorities and use good judgement based on residents needs. Conditions may also include heat, cold, excess humidity, work with chemicals, dust, noise, driving a vehicle, fire manipulation. 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 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. 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, 12/10/2024. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-05 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: General knowledge of medical diagnoses/conditions. General knowledge of mental health diagnoses/conditions. General knowledge of alcohol and drug dependence and the rehabilitation process. Knowledge of medical terminology for use in preparation of documentation for electronic medical record. Knowledge of safe driving techniques and ability to drive government owned vehicles. 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. 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 There is no educational substitution at this grade level. 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/.