Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

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 Education: Experience
• One year of experience in a health care field, such as but not limited to nursing, medical assistant, or health technician
• OR Education
• Two years above high school with a minimum of six semester hours directly related to a health care field or associate's degree in a health care related degree
• OR Experience/Education Combination
• Equivalent combinations of experience and education are qualifying
• Examples are listed below: Six months of experience in the health care field
• and one year above high school
• or Six months of experience in the health care field and successful completion of a course for health care technicians, hospital corpsmen, medical service specialists, or ophthalmology technicians given by the U.S. Armed Forces
• or Six months of experience in the health care field and completion of an independent study course in Ophthalmic Medical Assisting
• Certification: All applicants must be certified as a Certified Ophthalmic Assistant (COA) with the Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology (JCAHPO)
• The COA certification is JCAHPO's entry-level certification examination for a Health Technician (Ophthalmology)
• 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)
• Grade Determinations: GS09: Must have one year of experience equivalent to the GS-8 grade level
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA)
• In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: 1
• Ability to work with a team to provide technical guidance, plan, organize, and coordinate activities of a Health Technician (Ophthalmology) in order to effectively complete job duties of assignment such as distributing workload, monitoring the status and progress of work, monitoring accuracy of work, etc.
• 2
• Ability to communicate effectively in order to meet program objectives
• This may include preparing reports in various formats and presenting data to various organizational levels
• 3
• Ability to assist in Health Technician (Ophthalmology) development, outcome management, and strategic planning
• and 4
• Ability to act as liaison between Health Technicians (Ophthalmology) to resolve informal employee complaints and concerns
• Preferred Experience: Proficient in performing a wide range of ophthalmic diagnostic tests (visual acuity, tonometry, refraction, OCT, visual fields, fluorescein angiography, fundus photography, A-Scan)
• Skilled in operating and maintaining ophthalmic instruments
• Ability to perform difficult ophthalmic technical duties with considerable latitude for the exercise of independent judgment, ensuring accuracy and patient safety
• Experience training and mentoring junior technicians
• Ability to coordinate clinic flow, manage schedules, and ensure efficient patient throughput
• Strong communication skills for collaboration with ophthalmologists, optometrists, and administrative staff Familiarity with electronic health records (EHR) systems
• Ability to manage inventory of ophthalmic supplies and equipment
• Prior lead or senior technician role or demonstrated leadership responsibilities
• Exposure to specialty areas such as retina, glaucoma, or cataract surgery support Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS09
• The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is at the GS09
• Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.