Health Technician (Home Health)

Description:

This position is located in the Inpatient Geriatrics Service, Office of the Nurse Executive located at the Captain James A Lovell Federal Health Care Center (FHCC) in North Chicago, Illinois. This position is for the "Green House" homes. The Green House home is organized around the needs and lives of elders who live there. The duty of the of this position is to protect, to nurture, to sustain the elder, to maintain the safety and cleanliness of the environment and providing high quality care.

Requirements:

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 06/28/2024.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. For a GS-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials.

Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

Specialized Experience (for positions at GS-4 and above): Positions in this series range widely in type and include support duties to medical or health personnel such as audiologists, speech pathologists, medical officers, and optometrists. Therefore, technician experience is experience that required application of the knowledge, methods, and techniques of the position to be filled.

GS-06 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-05 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes: Observing patients physical and emotional response to medical care to recognize deviations from the normal aging process and applies knowledge of basic first-aid principles in responding to situations. Labeling and arranging completed food items following HACCP guidelines for receiving, preparing, storing, and transporting food as needed. Performing cleaning tasks such as washing walls, doors, door frames, baseboard corners and edges; sweeping, moping, and vacuuming.

GS-07 grade level: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-06 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience includes: Experience utilizing direct patient care techniques, including ADLs, ambulating patients, infection control, and emergency response, using appropriate safety precautions. Preparing and serving food for consumption; performing a range of cooking to include but not limited to roasting, braising, and boiling. Using modified diet and correct food portions to serve patients and answer routine questions concerning patient diet. Documenting patient treatment and goals such as medical history, vital signs, chief complaints, allergies, pertinent health problems, current medications for the purpose of communicating with the staff nurses and patient families. Using appropriate cleaning agents and germicidal solutions to remove stains from a wide variety of surfaces to provide bacteriological safe environment.

Graduate education (Masters level) may be used to substitute for specialized experience only in those instances where it is directly related to the work of the position.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:
Clinical Data Collection/Documentation Customer Service (Clerical/Technical) Food Service Patient Care Work Practices

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.

Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: Duties require extensive periods of standing and walking. Workings with residents require regular and recurring bending, lifting (not to exceed 40 pounds), and stooping, stretching and similar activities.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.