Clarification from the agency

This job is open to current permanent Department of Veteran Affairs employees, current permanent Federal employees of other agencies and all US Citizens. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

Duties listed below are required at the Full Performance Level of GS-7. Those selected at a lower grade will perform the same duties, but will operate under close supervision and will not be expected to demonstrate the same level of subject matter mastery.

Major Duties and Responsibilities of the Health Technician (Optometry) include:

• Perform spectacle data collection using a manual lensometer; including measurement of sphere, cylinder and axis by lensometry, whether single vision, progressive add, bifocal or trifocal; whether glass or plastic lenses; amount and base direction of prism power.
• Troubleshoot spectacle complaints for optometrist(s) to further assist the patient.
• Prepare glasses prescription for practitioners to evaluate and sign.
• Measure and record intraocular pressure by non-contact tonometry.
• Performs visual fields with any technologically current perimetry equipment, e.g. Humphrey or Goldmann perimeter.
• Perform corneal keratometry and automated refraction as indicated and accurately record in electronic health record (CPRS).
• Operate all diagnostic equipment within the clinic, including but not limited to, optical coherence tomographer (OCT), pachymeter, visual field (VF) analyzer, lensometer, anterior segment camera, and digital fundus camera.
• Perform stereopsis testing using Randot or another appropriate test.
• Perform color vision measurement using pseudoisochromatic plates or another appropriate test.
• Perform Amsler grid testing to evaluate each eye separately for distortion, metamorphopsia, micropsia, and scotomas.
• Ensure proper cleaning and disinfection, maintenance, and back up of all clinic equipment. Will assist with annual inventory, ordering of instruments, supplies, and equipment. Will report needed repairs to biomedical engineering.
• Assist the Optometrist(s) in other non-specified technical areas within the clinic.
• Perform simple repairs on spectacles, to include, but not limited to: tightening screws, replacing lenses that have fallen out, and replacing nose pads. Will perform adjustments on spectacles for patient comfort including temple, nose pad, and pantoscopic tilt adjustments.
• Prepare and maintain the examination room to include proper equipment calibration and disinfection. Will perform inventories and replace or order all medications, equipment, supplies and forms (e.g., replacement bulbs, visual field paper) needed for the Optometry Section in accordance with VA and JCAHO requirements.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm.
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the 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.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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 as a health technician or assistant in the health care field demonstrating the applicant's ability to perform the work or by demonstrating a basic understanding of work in the health care field; OR

Education: Successful completion of two academic years above high school with a minimum of 12 semester hours related to health technician/ assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant or associate degree, or completion of an independent study course in an optometry related technician or assistant field; OR

Experience/Education Combination: Equivalent combinations of experience and education are qualifying. Examples are:
(a) Six months of experience comparable to the next lower level which demonstrates the knowledge of optometry assistant theory and practices and general understanding of the health technician/assistant duties and one year above high school with a minimum of six semester hours of health technician/assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant related courses.
(b) Successful completion of a course for health care technicians or assistants, hospital corpsmen, medical service specialists, or hospital training in a program given by the U.S. Armed Forces, the U.S. Maritime Service, or the U.S. Public Health Service, may be substituted on a month-for-month basis.

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.

English Language Proficiency: Health Technician (Optometry) candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

Grandfathering Provision. All individuals employed in VHA in this occupational series or in another occupational series performing the duties as described in the qualification standard on the effective date of the qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade held including positive education and licensure/trademark/registration/certification. 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:
(1) They may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.
(2) Employees 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.
(3) Health Technicians (Optometry) 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 re-entry to the occupation.

Grade Determinations: In addition to meeting the basic requirements listed above, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Health Technician (Optometry) GS-4
Experience: None beyond Basic Requirements.

Health Technician (Optometry) GS-5
Experience - One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade. In addition to experience, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs):

• Knowledge of basic eye anatomy and function.
• Ability to obtain, document and record ophthalmic and medical information from patients in order to develop an accurate electronic progress note.
• Ability to practice basic hygiene and infection control in a patient care setting.
• Ability to follow eye clinic and patient care medical policies and procedures.
• Ability to perform minor eyeglasses repairs, such as replacing nose pads and screws.

Health Technician (Optometry) GS-6
Experience - One year experience equivalent to the next lower grade. In addition to experience, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs):

• Ability to provide patient education for eye health and/or vision conditions, to include assisting with patient contact lens insertion, removal and hygiene (cleaning and disinfection) care.
• Ability to accurately enter into a phoropter the autorefractometry or habitual refractive prescription (i.e., eyeglasses prescription) or lensometer findings, including sphere, cylinder and axis.
• Ability to perform patient spectacle fitting and dispensing, including selection of appropriate frame, ophthalmic lenses, interpupillary measurements (distance and near) and proper segment height determination, as well as the ability to transpose sphere, cylinder and axis.
• Ability to provide basic triage of patient telephone calls or optometry requests.
• Knowledge of ophthalmic medications and supplies needed in the process of restocking the eye clinic exam rooms.

Health Technician (Optometry), GS-7
Experience - One year 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. In addition to experience, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs):

• Ability to determine preliminary objective estimate and/or refinement of the optical status of the eye, not to include the patient's final subjective refraction.
• Ability to triage and manage eyeglasses issues (e.g., measurement of vertex distance, base curve, prism correction, center thickness, slab off, Fresnel prism, decentration, etc.).
• Ability to perform accurate assessment of accommodation, near point of convergence and ocular alignment (far and near).
• Ability to assist the eye care provider (optometrist or ophthalmologist) with ophthalmic procedures.
• Ability to assist with obtaining accurate ocular cultures and smears.
• Knowledge and ability to provide advanced patient education for eye health and/or vision conditions.

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. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-4 to GS-7.

Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

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.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

• Attention to Detail
• Customer Service
• Decision Making
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Reading Comprehension
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork

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.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

• Resume

Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field.

Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field.

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please 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)
• Performance Appraisal
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Veterans' Preference: This position is one of the hybrid title 38 occupations reported among the occupations with the largest staffing shortages and, therefore, 38 U.S.C. § 7412 waives the requirement to apply Veterans' preference to external applicants for appointments made during the Fiscal Year 2026.

Veterans' preference does not apply for internal or other current permanent Federal agency employees.

Next steps