The Acute Mental Health Inpatient Units 250, Birch, Cypress and Douglas Nursing Assistant is a key member of the Acute Mental Health Unit team. The role of the Nursing Assistant is to provide patient care, assist staff, and their families during the patient stay on 520, Birch, Cypress or Douglas Unit. 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. Education or Training. Six months of general experience. Experience must demonstrate the ability to acquire the knowledge and skills to perform the work of a NA; or, One year above high school with courses related to the Nursing Assistant occupation; or, Completion of an intensive, specialized, occupation-related course of study of less than one year as a nursing assistant may also meet in full the experience requirements for GS-3. English Language Proficiency. Nursing Assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j. 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). Grade Determinations: GS-3 Nursing Assistant (Entry Level). Experience and Education. None beyond the basic requirements. GS-4 Nursing Assistant. Experience. One year of specialized experience as a NA or experience in another medical field (licensed practical nurse, health technician, hospital corpsman, etc.), performing technical and nursing skills requiring knowledge of the human physical and emotional states, therapeutic communication, and technical skills required for basic and intermediate treatments; OR Education. Successful completion of 2 years above high school in an accredited institution with courses related to nursing care, health care or in a field of study appropriate to the specialization of the position, such as education in a program for psychology, psychiatric, or operating room technicians; AND Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). The candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:1. Ability to provide a range of patient/resident care and contribute to the completion of the nurse care plan and recovery of patients/residents.2. Ability to observe patients/residents' or resident's physical or emotional status and refer deviations and/or problems to supervisor in a timely manner.3. Ability to properly use equipment, materials and supplies in simple diagnostic and treatment procedures such as bladder scan, continuous passive motion device, blood glucose monitoring machine, specimen collection, etc.4. Ability to communicate effectively with patients/residents, their families and other health professionals. GS-5 Nursing Assistant (Full Performance Level)Experience. One year of progressively responsible assignments and experience equivalent to the GS-4 level which demonstrates knowledge, skills, and abilities that are directly related to the specific assignment. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the professional KSAs below; OR Education. Successful completion of a 4-year course of study above high school leading to a bachelor's degree that included 24 semester hours of courses related to health care or possession of a bachelor's degree; AND Demonstrated KSAs:1. Ability to assist in the full range of nursing care to patients/residents with physical and/or behavioral problems in a hospital, long term care or outpatient setting under the direction of a Registered Nurse and/or Licensed Vocational Nurse/Licensed Practical Nurse.2. Ability to communicate orally with patients/residents, families, interdisciplinary team and other personnel. This includes serving as a preceptor to new NAs by assisting with the coordination of their orientation and overseeing/assessing their practical experience while in a clinical setting.3. Ability to recognize and react to emergent patient/resident care situations and intervene while waiting for assistance. For example, recognizing need for basic life support, controlling bleeding and assisting with behavior crisis, etc. References: VA Handbook 5005/81, Part II, Appendix G46, Nursing Assistant Qualifications Standard, GS-621 Preferred Experience: One (1) year of nursing assistant experience providing comprehensive nursing care to patients in a mental health/psychiatric setting. 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-05. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-03 to GS-05. Physical Requirements: Duties require extensive period of standing, sitting and walking. Working with patients requires regular and recurring bending, lifting, stooping, stretching and similar activities. The employee provides physical restraints for confused or combative patients as necessary. The nursing assistant must be physically able to lift to meet the physical standards of the position as evaluated by Employee Health. ["The Nursing Assistant takes and records vital signs in CPRS assist with morning and evening ADL Activities. The Nursing Assistant escorts patients to appointments, within VA and external, to court hearings. The Nursing Assistant provides close observation per nursing orders. The incumbent is responsible to perform a variety of nursing care duties, ranging from routing to moderately specialized in nature in the acute mental health units. Duties include but are not limited to: Recognizing and addressing bio-psychosocial and age-specific concerns of patients. Recognizing signs and symptoms of psychiatric illness and responds appropriately. Recognizing that patients require medical treatment and/or staff inventions to control behaviors. Understanding that maintaining a therapeutic relationship with patients promotes stabilization. Providing care to patients with a variety of physical and /or behavior problems. Demonstrates knowledge and basic in communication for the purpose of establishing therapeutic relationships with patient. Communicates therapeutically with patients to promote socialization skills. Performs basic nursing treatments, and functions such as personal care, assistance with ADL's, vital signs, blood glucose monitoring, assigned treatments and specimen collection within established hospital policy and procedure. Performs all job responsibilities in accordance with prescribed safety and infection control procedures including thorough hand washing, use of disposable gloves where indicated, and proper disposal of soiled materials Documents findings in the patient CPRS record. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, Various Shifts w/ flexibility to meet patient needs Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized"]
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.
