Lead Medical Records Technician (Health Information Technician)

Clarification from the agency

The Public - Open to ALL US Citizens, including ALL Current Permanent Federal Employees, Current Permanent Department of Veterans Affairs Employees; and Current Permanent NF/SG VA Healthcare System Employees. Facility Employees will have FIRST consideration, 2nd-Agency Employees, 3rd-Federal Employees of other agencies and then US Citizens. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position.

Functions include not limited to:

• Provide advice, counsel, or instruction to individual employee(s) or group(s) on both work and administrative matters.
• Evaluate employees, interview potential candidates for employment and make recommendations for selections and/or promotions for positions in the area of responsibility.
• Handle individual or group grievances, employee complaints, and/or those not resolved at a lower level.
• Promote and maintain high standards of behavior and conduct; maintain good employee relations.
• Schedule and conduct meetings with staff assessing work related problems, recommending and communicating ideas and strategies to fulfill the VA mission as set by hospital administration.
• Function as a liaison with HIMS and ROI.
• Coordinate daily tasks with Supervisor, assisting with managerial duties as needed.
• Identify training needs and provide training and guidance to staff members, to include policy and procedure changes, training for new employees, and training to ensure employee competency.
• Create, maintain, and revise/update all medical records' standard operating procedures.
• Initiate quantitative and qualitative analysis of medical records to ensure that all pathology component parts are present, accurate, complete, timely, and will meet the established requirements and standard of JCHO, CAP, and CLIA.
• Maintain supplies and equipment. Initiate work orders and service requests as needed.
• Design workflows to accomplish objectives and meet turnaround times, assigning and monitoring duties and work progress.
• Serve as an expert providing authoritative advice and consultation for more difficult/complex tasks requiring special knowledge.
• Compile data and issues reports regarding transcription accuracy.

Work Schedule: 8am - 4:30pm, Monday through Friday
Telework: Ad-hoc
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 55706F
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.
• 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 identification 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. 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).

English Language Proficiency. MRTs HIT must be proficient in spoken and written English, as required by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

Experience and Education
Experience. One year of creditable experience that indicates knowledge of medical terminology, anatomy, physiology, and a general understanding of health records. Six months of the required one year of creditable experience must have provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) needed to perform MRT HIT work.
- OR -
Education-Submit transcript. An associate's degree from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, with a major field of study in health information technology/health information management, or a related degree with a minimum of 12 semester hours in health information technology/health information management (e.g., courses in medical terminology, anatomy, physiology, legal aspects of health care, and introduction to health records).
-OR-
Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of creditable experience and education are qualifying towards meeting basic experience requirements. The following educational/training substitutions are appropriate for combining education and creditable experience:

Grandfathering Provision. All persons employed in VHA as a MRT HIT, on the effective date (12/10/19) of this qualification standard, are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the grade held, including positive education and licensure/certification/ registration that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation.


Grade Determinations: All MRT HIT employees assigned to this occupation must have an approved parenthetical title as described below:

Lead Medical Records Technician (HIT), GS-8
Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

• Comprehensive knowledge of health record technology methods, procedures, and techniques.
• Ability to work with a team to provide technical guidance, and to plan, organize, and coordinate activities to effectively complete job assignments (i.e., distributing workload, monitoring the status and progress of work, monitoring accuracy of work, and ensuring required timelines are met.)
• Skill in communicating effectively, both orally and in writing, to meet program objectives.
• Ability to prepare reports in a variety of formats and present data to individuals at various organizational levels.
• Ability to coordinate and provide staff development and training.

Assignment. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), range of variety, and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Lead MRTs HIT perform quantitative and qualitative reviews of health record documentation, initiate various reports, and analyze data. They coordinate, assign, and monitor the workflow. They ensure that team assignments are carried out by distributing and balancing workload, monitoring the status and progress of work, and adjusting workload in accordance with established priorities, instructing and answering employee questions, checking employee work, and amending or rejecting work that does not meet work standards. They resolve informal complaints of employees and make recommendations to the supervisor, as requested, concerning promotions, reassignments, recognition of performance, and personnel needs. Lead MRTs HIT train and provide expert advice on specific tasks, procedures, and policies. They serve as technical expert in health record content and documentation requirements, and as an expert resource for clinical staff regarding requirements for complete documentation. They create statistical reports for medical center management. Lead MRTs HIT are responsible for assisting staff with completing the health record for patient transfers, legal cases, or other urgent requests. They identify and abstract information from health records for internal and external audits and special studies.

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 GS-8.

Physical Requirements: Work is sedentary in nature, requiring long periods of sitting in one position and intense concentration. Work primarily involves sitting at a computer workstation and the ability to operate a computer, keyboard, printers and other basic office machines and telecommunications equipment. The work includes bending, walking, standing and carrying items such as papers, books and files. The incumbent observes normal safety and laboratory precautions while working.

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.

RESUME REMINDER: Please be aware that your answers will be verified against information provided on your resume. Be sure that your resume clearly supports your responses to all of the questions by addressing your work experience in detail. Even though we do not require a specific resume format, your resume must be clear and in English so that we are able to fully evaluate your qualifications. To ensure you receive appropriate consideration, please list the duties you performed under each individual job title. If we are unable to match your experiences with the positions held, you may lose consideration for this vacancy. Do not include a photograph or video of yourself, or any sensitive information (age, date of birth, marital status, protected health information, religious affiliation, social security number, etc.) on your resume or cover letter. If your resume includes a photo, you will be disqualified. We will not access web pages or encrypted, and digitally signed documents linked on your resume or cover letter to determine your qualifications. We cannot make assumptions regarding your qualifications.

Your resume must include the following information for each job listed:
* Updated and accurate duties (be as detailed as possible)
* Grade level (applicable for federal jobs)
* Month & year start/end dates (e.g. June 2007 to April 2008)
* Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week).

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:

• Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV)

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
• Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV)
• Other (1)
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Veterans' preference does not apply to this announcement since it fall under the VA occupational shortage list.

Next steps