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.
- Education, Experience, or Certification:
- Associates or higher degree in the biomedical technology or biomedical engineering field; OR
- Associates or higher degree in electronics, a field of information technology, or engineering (other than biomedical engineering) AND 1 year of creditable experience; OR
- Completion of the Department of Defense (DOD) biomedical equipment technician training program; OR
- Completion of a DOD training program in repair and maintenance of electronic systems or information technology AND 1 year of creditable experience; OR
- Completion of a biomedical engineering technician or Healthcare Technology Management (HTM) certificate program that included an internship or apprenticeship; OR
- Completion of biomedical engineering technician or HTM certificate program that did not include an internship AND 1 year of creditable experience; OR
- Hold or having ever held certification as a Certified Biomedical Equipment Technician (CBET), Certified Radiology Equipment Specialist (CRES), Certified Laboratory Equipment Specialist (CLES), or Certified Healthcare Technology Manager (CHTM). Continuous maintenance of certification is not required throughout VHA employment.
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).
One year of experience at the lower grade level (GS-9):
- Troubleshoot and perform planned maintenance on medical equipment
- Assist with incoming inspections and documentation
- Receive increasingly less frequent supervision, direction, or guidance from more experienced staff members
GS-11 KSAs:
- Knowledge of standards including National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Joint Commission (TJC), and the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) for safe operation of medical equipment and clinical systems
- Skill in using test and calibration equipment including digital multi-meters, electrical safety analyzers, defibrillator analyzers, patient simulators, manometers, tachometers, and Local Area Network (LAN) analyzers
- Skill in interpreting a variety of technical data including schematic drawings and wiring diagrams
- Skill in applying networking principles, such as Access Control List (ACL), Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), and Virtual Local Area Networks (VLAN)
- Ability to perform advanced testing to troubleshoot medical equipment and clinical system interfaces
- Ability to maintain medical computers and software
- Ability to manage projects involving medical equipment and clinical systems
Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit
https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. VA Handbook 5005 Part II Appendix G49, effective date Nov 26, 2024.
The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-11.
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.
Environmental Factors: The work may include electrical energy, working on ladders, working outdoors, and working alone. There may be occasional exposure to moderate risks or discomforts associated with hazardous materials. The work may involve occasional travel, driving, and/or travel by motor vehicle.
Creditable Experience: To be creditable, the experience must have required the use of knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with current health care industry and required using knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) directly applicable to the assignment and associated within the scope of the BESS profession. Experience is only creditable if it was acquired in the health care industry and is either directly related to the position to be filled or a related field (for example, Biomedical Equipment Support Specialist, Biomedical Equipment Technician, Field Service Engineer, Medical Equipment Repairer, or Information Technology (IT) Specialist). Experience satisfying this requirement may be paid or non-paid employment as a BESS.
Part-Time Experience: Part-time experience is creditable according to its relationship to the full-time work week. For example, a BESS employed 20 hours per week, or on a half-time basis, would receive 1 full-time work week of credit for each 2 weeks of service.
Quality of Experience: Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to BESS experience at the next lower level and have been in the health care industry. For all assignments above the full performance level (FPL), the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity, and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and performed be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time