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: Six months of experience that demonstrates the applicant' ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work; OR,
• Education: One year above high school that includes at least 6 semester hours in health care related courses such as sterile processing, nursing assistant, hospital corpsman, and operating room and surgical technician courses, or other courses related to the position; [Note: Experience satisfying this requirement may be paid/non-paid employment as a Medical Supply Technician. Please make sure that your experience is evident in your resume, and hours worked per week for each work experience entry is included, or your resume will be considered incomplete, and you will be considered "ineligible" for the position.] OR,
• Combination: Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.

Grade Determinations:

GS-7 Experience (There is no education substitution at this grade)

• Experience: At least one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-6 level which demonstrates knowledge, skills, and abilities that are directly related to the specific assignment. In addition, must demonstrate the following are met:
  • Knowledge of inventory and supply principles, concepts and methodologies in order to recommend solutions to areas of SPS concerning existing policies, work procedures and work methods involving SPS automated equipment tracking systems.
  • Knowledge of work and objectives in both Preparation and Decontamination areas of the Sterile Processing Service in order to make appropriate judgment and analysis to provide services or resolve problems concerning automated equipment tracking systems.
  • Ability to search for and analyze information derived from equipment tracking systems, inventory record systems or other automated catalog systems in order to resolve issues, answer questions, provide automated equipment tracking information reports and services, and recommend actions to eliminate problems.
  • Knowledge of safe, intelligent and efficient processing in a Sterile Processing Service, general knowledge of surgical procedures and techniques that cover patient care. Ability to communicate effectively with attending, residents, nursing staff, VISN level staff and management, and vendors concerning the scheduling, inventory, and use of RME.
  • Knowledge of fundamental principles and practices of surgical and medical asepsis, disinfecting process, sterilization process, and proper selection of disinfectants, microbiology, fundamental biology and human body defense.
  • General knowledge of ordering and receiving supply items, knowledge of replacement quotas and inventory procedures to maintain supply levels.
  • Knowledge of the substantive programs of the hospital as they relate to the function of the Sterile Processing Service.
  • Able to provide training support for all aspects of instrument tracking, maintenance, and repair. Incumbent must develop Standard Operating Procedures and other reference documents that relate to CensiTrac the functions managed by this and other tracking systems.
  • Able to provide CensiTrac technical support for all end user customers serviced by the Long Beach Healthcare Center including Logistics, the Operating Room, and the using services.
  • Knowledge of and skilled in the use of VA internal and external systems such as; instrument tracking systems, intranet, VISTA, SharePoint and other software used by the service such as Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook.
  • Broad knowledge of "CensiTrac" instrument tracking system in order to troubleshoot, diagnose, and correct malfunctions.
  • Knowledge of vast surgical instrumentation, classification, and composition for the proper identification and marking application.
  • Knowledge of surgical instrument marking systems for safe application of appropriate marking technique.
  • Adept in operating a computer terminal and be able to manage multiple activities at one time.

References: VA Handbook 5005/83, Part II, Appendix G47

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-07.

Physical Requirements: This work involves both administrative and physical demands and is performed in various settings: decontamination, preparation, clean sterile supply (preparation) and in other services and departments throughout the medical facility/campus. The incumbent may be required to work in areas that are hot, cold, drafty and poorly lighted. The employee is subject to the possibility of falls, scrapes, cuts, bruises, Needle Sticks, and other injuries from handling equipment. The work requires standing and walking during the entire workday and frequent bending and lifting of sterile products and packages (occasionally weighing as much as 50 pounds). The work requires dexterity and visual acuity for manipulating, disassembly and assembly of instrumentation. On a regular and recurring basis, the employee alternates between a contaminated environment and a carefully controlled clean environment. The employee wears special clothing, hair covers, personal protective equipment and shoe covers that can be uncomfortably warm. The employee uses insulated gloves to remove carts from sterilizers. The employee is subject to burns from accidentally touching hot items. The hazards of working around minute quantities of sterilizing gasses are unknown. The employee often works around body fluids, mucous, excretions and bits of tissue, some of which may be foul smelling. Strong, unpleasant odors are encountered while decontaminating bloody or grossly contaminated instrumentation or reusable medical equipment. The work area is noisy due to the clatter of metal instruments, rumbling of carts and operation of pre-sterilizing equipment.