Duties
Health technicians are responsible for routine repairs of hearing aids delivered or mailed to the Audiology Clinic. During clinic hours, s/he meets with veterans on a one-to-one basis to solve hearing aid problems. In this capacity, the employees provide primary level troubleshooting and repair for veterans who are experiencing problems. Duties will include:
- Evaluation of hearing aid function and fit through listening checks, electroacoustic evaluation, visual inspection, changing of batteries, cleaning of electrical contacts, removal of impacted cerumen from the aid, replacing earmold tubing, inspecting and replacing receivers, and counseling the veteran in optimal use and proper methods of care for the instruments.
- When it is necessary for a hearing aid to be returned to the manufacturer for repair, the health technician prepares all necessary paperwork and records and packages and ships the instrument.
- Incumbent makes appropriate entries in the clinic's record tracking system in order to insure that the hearing aid is properly tracked during the repair process.
- Independently resets the fitting parameters of programmable hearing aids that have been returned from the manufacturers for repairs.
- Uses the most advanced hearing aid fitting technology and software to prepare the repaired hearing aids for shipping to the patient.
- Independently makes minor programming adjustments, within clinic guidelines, to increase or decrease volume, run feedback manager, add or remove program options from the programming button, and consults the audiologists for any more detailed programming changes.
- Makes minor shell changes and external component repairs. Determines if shell or programming adjustments are needed to solve patient fit problems.
- Compares electroacoustic output curves to NOAH program, makes minor adjustments to bring within compliance or sends out for repair.
- Independently determines the patient's need for loaner hearing aids based on the patient's degree and nature of hearing loss, audiological profile and hearing aid fitting rationale data.
- Independently determines patient need for assistive devices, orders devices such as Pocket Talkers and TV devices from the Denver Acquisitions and Logistics Center and instructs patients in proper use and care.
- Troubleshoots assistive devices to determine if a replacement is needed.
- ROES Entries: Responsible for entering ROES orders for hearing aid repairs, batteries and clinic supplies as necessary. Tracks and certifies hearing aid orders as they are received, as well as taking necessary steps for correcting errors or changes as they occur.
- Supply Management: Maintains an adequate supply of materials and other supplies to meet the clinic needs. Maintains stock of supplies, forms, batteries, and impression boxes in all clinic rooms. Works with Staff from Material Management to insure that supplies are ordered and re-stocked. The health technician maintains clinic records in accordance with service line, medical center and VA requirements.
- Stock Hearing Aids and ALD Management: Maintains stock of loaner hearing aids and pocket-talkers and insures they are in good working order at all times. Receives turned in hearing aids, removes from veteran's record, and determines if the aids can be used as loaners or turned in for salvage. Sends potential loaner aids for refurbishment to insure that they are fully operational.
- Equipment Management: Responsible for turning on all audiology test equipment and doing daily listening checks to insure proper functioning of audiometers. At the end of the day, responsible for proper shut-down of all audiometric test equipment. Responsible for daily cleaning of the suction pumps and other equipment in the clinic.
- Receives and screens phone calls from veterans regarding questions about their hearing aids or assistive listening devices.
- Follows up with patients to determine proper course of action to facilitate repairs or refers patient to the staff Audiologist as needed.
- Assists in triage of daily repair needs of patients for hearing aid repairs and general hearing aid questions.
- Troubleshoots patient phone calls and walk-in patients for both Audiologists and Audiology Technicians. Receives and responds to all consults sent to the clinic, in regard to amount of time needed for the appointment and urgency of the need. Verifies eligibility status of veterans through proper programs advises veteran of their eligibility status. Fills cancelled appointments as quickly as possible.
- Schedules all patient appointments according to VHA directives and within scope of Audiology Specialty Clinic guidelines.
- Serves as a liaison between manufacturers and Audiologists.
Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm
Telework: Not Available
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
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.
- Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
- 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.
- Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
- Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
- 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 within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.
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.
- English Language Proficiency: HTA, HTSLP or HTASLP candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403 (f).
- Experience and Education:
- Experience: Six months of experience comparable to the next lower level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities related to the duties of the position to be filled. OR
- Education. Successful completion of two academic years above high school leading to an associate degree or a bachelor's degree with at least 12 semester hours in courses related to the position. OR
- Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of experience and education are qualifying. An example of a combination of experience/education is three months of experience comparable to the next lower level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities related to the duties of the position to be filled and one year above high school with a minimum of 6 semester hours related to the health care industry.
- 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).
Grade Determinations:
GS-7 Health Technician (Audiology)
Experience: Completion of one year of progressive experience and/or experience equivalent to the next lower grade level directly related to the position being filled.
Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
- Ability to mentor and train new HTAs.
- Ability to prepare patients for advanced testing procedures performed by the audiologist, such as evoked potentials.
- Ability to develop and implement the technician role for a program in a focused area of audiology.
Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, 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 be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. The HTA at this level works under supervision and direction of a licensed audiologist. Assignments associated with this position include, but are not limited to: completing adjustments to hearing aid settings as outlined in the audiologist's plan of care, preparing patients for advanced diagnostic procedures such as evoked potentials and collaborating with audiology team to develop training programs for patients and staff.
Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit
https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.
The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-7.
Physical Requirements: Light lifting and carrying (under 15 lbs), reaching above shoulder, use of fingers, walking and standing (1 hr), near vision correctable, ability to distinguish basic colors, hearing (aid may be permitted).
Education
IMPORTANT: 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/.
Benefits
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Review our benefits
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.
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.
The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.
It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.
Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.
Required Documents
To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:
The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please use this
checklist to ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc.
- Cover Letter
- DD-214/ Statement of Service
- Disability Letter (VA)
- License
- Other (1)
- Professional Certification
- Resume
- SF-15
- SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
- Transcript
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 12/27/2024 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12632276.
- To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.
- Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package.
NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.
To verify your application is complete, log into your USA JOBS account,
https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the more information link for this position. The Details page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. To return to an incomplete application, log into your USA JOBS account and click Update Application in the vacancy announcement. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USA JOBS account or your application will be incomplete.
Next steps
Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After we receive application packages (including all required documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made.
You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center.
NOTE: Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a condition of employment and a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full- and part-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities.