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Nursing Assistant - Inpatient Mental Health

Veterans Health Administration | Lebanon, PA

Posted Date 12/18/2024
Description This position is located at the Lebanon VAMC in the Inpatient Mental Health Unit.The Nursing Assistant delivers fundamental, knowledge-based care to assigned patients while developing technical competencies. The primary purpose of this position is to perform a very wide range of patient personal care, support diagnostic services, and chart activities on a regular and continual basis on the hospice unit. The incumbent performs duties in such a way as to promote a sense of worth and dignity within each individual.

Major duties include, but are not limited to:
  • Responsible for direct patient care within the Mental health inpatient unit and facilitates the appropriate plan of care.
  • Manage patient care by monitoring of psychiatric symptoms, assisting in medical and psychiatric emergencies, assisting patients in performing activities of daily living, gathering of clinical data, such as vital signs, and providing appropriate, clinically sound care.
  • Responsible for maintaining patient safety and the safety of the environment.
  • Observes changes in the patient status and notify the charge nurse and identify each patient's requirements relative to their recovery status.
  • Identifies and cares for suicidal Veterans and manages disturbed behavior through their specialized training.
  • Provides guidance to all caregivers and collaborates with the interdisciplinary team (IDT) regarding the plan of care to support patients' needs.
  • Perform other duties as assigned.
Work Schedule: 4:00pm - 12:00am Monday-Friday includes every other weekend/holiday
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000 / Nursing Assistant - Inpatient Mental Health
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure Report: Not requiredApplicants 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:
  • Citizenship. Citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g, this part.)
  • Education: [Experience or] 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 of education above high school with courses related to the NA occupation; OR, Completion of an intensive, specialized, occupation-related [training]course of study [or program] of less than one year as a NA may also meet in full the experience requirements for GS-3
  • English Proficiency. NAs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with VA Handbook 5005, part II, chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3j.
  • Grandfathering Provisions. All NAs employed in VHA on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the series and grade held that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:
    • Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
    • If an employee who was retained (grandfathered) under this provision
      leaves the occupation, the employee loses protected status of the
      grandfathering provision and must meet the full VA qualification standard
      basic requirements in effect at the time of re-entry to the occupation.
Grade Determinations:

GS-3 NA (Entry Level)
  • Experience and Education. None beyond the basic requirements.
  • Assignments. Individuals assigned as GS-3 NAs are considered to be at the entry level and are closely supervised.
GS-4 NA
  • 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: Education. Successful completion of 2 years above high school in an accredited institution with courses related to nursing care, healthcare 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). In addition, 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 (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 Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following 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.
  4. Assignment. This is the full performance level for NAs. NAs at this grade level function as a member of the nursing care team and assist licensed nursing staff in the care of patients/residents receiving outpatient care, home or community living care or other patients/residents who are in acute, sub acute or chronic states of illness. The distinguishing factor is that patient/resident assignments typically involve more complex nursing needs which can vary within a range of predictable to unpredictable requirements. NAs at this level also assume more of a peer education/mentorship role.
Preferred Experience: Three years of nursing assistant experience, one year behavioral health experience

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is 5. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of 3 to 5.

Physical Requirements: Heavy lifting (up to 50 pounds); heavy carrying (up to 50 pounds); straight pulling (2-4 hours); pushing (2-4 hours); reaching above shoulders (1-2 hours); use of fingers; both hands required; walking (4-6 hours); standing (4-6 hours); repeated bending (2-4 hours); both legs required; ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously; near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4; far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and 20/40 in the other; both eyes required; ability to distinguish basic colors and shades of color; hear (aid permitted); mental and emotional stability.IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

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