Career Center

This position is located in the Northern Colorado VA Outpatient Clinic, Audiology Service, in Loveland, CO. The duties and responsibilities are carried out in all clinical and other patient care areas involved with the Audiology service. The health technician supports the function of the clinical programs in Audiology. The incumbent is a staff health technician (Audiology) under the supervision of a GS-12 audiologist or above. Basic Requirements Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States (U.S.). Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7407(a). Experience and Education. (1) 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 (2) 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 (3) 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. Certification. Certification by the Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation (CAOHC) as a Certified Occupational Hearing Conservationist (COHC) is required for the HTA, GS-08 assignment only. Loss of Credential. An employee in this occupation who fails to maintain the required certification identified for the HTA, GS-08 position must be removed from the assignment, which may also result in termination of employment. 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. Grade Determinations GS-8. Must have one year of progressive experience and/or experience equivalent to the next lower grade level directly related to the position being filled. Examples of specialized experience includes the following but not limited to the following: Greeting and escorting patients; Triaging patients to an audiologist based on complexity of the procedures being completed; Patient set up for procedures; Patient instruction and counseling on hearing loss, hearing protection, or hearing aids; Conducting hearing puretone air-conduction testing; Non-diagnostic otoscopy; taking earmold impressions; hearing aid troubleshooting and repair; providing basic hearing aid information for patients and caregivers; performing listening checks on hearing aids; Pairing hearing aids and accessories via Bluetooth technology; programming previously stored settings into hearing aids; activating remote controls; training of employees and patients on personal hearing protection devices; manage office supplies, and management of hearing protection device inventory. Certification. Certification by the Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation (CAOHC) as a Certified Occupational Hearing Conservationist (COHC) is required. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)- In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all the following KSAs: Ability to conduct employee hearing conservation education and training. Knowledge of the hearing conservation program requirements to manage records and files. Ability to perform pure tone air conduction testing. Ability to provide audiologic technical support to the employee hearing conservation program. Ability to identify a threshold shift and make appropriate referrals for further testing when indicated. 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 health technician works under the 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 team to develop training programs for patients and staff. The health technician may perform pure tone air conduction threshold testing for established patients and employees, without interpretation. The health technician may provide employee hearing conservation education and training, basic counselling of employees concerning test results and criteria for employee referral. This health technician collaborates with the Hearing Conservation Program Manager and manages records associated with the hearing conservation program. Preferred Experience: Experience working with veteran population, experience working with hearing instruments, CAOHC certification. References: VA Handbook 5005/143, Part II, Appendix G70 The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-8. Physical Requirements: Duties of the position require periods of sitting, standing and walking. Working with patients in the Audiologic clinic and on the wards require regular sitting, bending and standing. Patient transport occasionally requires the pushing of wheelchairs. Work in front of a monitor/screen of 1 to 4 hours per day is required. Some stressful situations may occur when communicating with patients and their families who may have multiple physical, mental and psychosocial problems and needs. ["Greeting and escorting patients. Triaging patients to an audiologist based on complexity of the procedures being completed. Patient set up for procedures (e.g., vestibular, neurodiagnostic procedures). Patient instruction and counseling on hearing loss, hearing protection, or hearing aids either on an individual basis or in a group setting. Conducting hearing puretone air-conduction testing without interpretation for the purpose of hearing conservation and for established patients in regular VA clinic. Performs Non-diagnostic otoscopy, Cerumen management and takes earmold impressions. Hearing aid troubleshooting and repair; providing basic hearing aid information for patients and caregivers, and performing listening checks on hearing aids. Electroacoustic analysis of devices, pairing hearing aids and accessories via Bluetooth technology, and programming previously stored settings into hearing aids. Trains employees and patients on personal hearing protection devices. Ensures timely and accurate documentation of all interactions in the medical records and that all encounters are correctly documented using electronic medical record and computerized tracking. Management of infection control, patient safety, and clinical supplies for the audiology clinic. Management of hearing protection device inventory. Reprocesses reusable medical equipment based on facility policy according to Medical Center infection control procedures and reusable medical equipment policies. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm\nTelework: Not Available\nVirtual: This is not a virtual position.\nFunctional Statement #: 52136-O\nRelocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized\nPermanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized\nFinancial Disclosure Report: Not required"]