Medical Instrument Technician (EEG)

Qualifications 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 English Language Proficiency: Per VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, Section A, Paragraph 3j: No person will be appointed under authority of 38 U.S.C., chapter 73 or 74, to serve in a direct patient-care capacity in VHA who is not proficient in written and spoken English Education There are no specific educational requirements for this occupation Certification: No certification or registration is required however, it is desirable that employees at this level have BCLS (Basic Cardiac Life Support) and ACLS (Advanced Cardiac Life Support) certifications Additionally, ABRET certification is desired but not required, 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: Basic Developmental Level GS-04 Experience At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the position to be filled Six months of this experience may have been in medically related fields such as nursing assistant, practical nursing, or similar fields The remaining six months must have been in operating diagnostic and therapeutic equipment covered by this occupation Experience gained in the operation of equipment for animal diagnosis or treatment may be credited at this level In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: 1 Knowledge of basic medical terminology 2 Ability to learn the components, operating characteristics, and settings of the equipment to be used 3 Ability to learn typical patient reactions to the basic procedures involved and ability to recognize signs of distress 4 Ability to learn the standard positions for the procedure being conducted 5 Ability to communicate orally and in writing OR, Education Successful completion of two years of education above high school or an 6 associate's degree with a major field of study directly related to the medical instrument technician occupation GS-5 Experience At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the position to be filled This would be experience in operating equipment related to the particular specialization for which application is made or in related functional areas Experience gained in the operation of equipment for animal diagnosis or treatment may be credited through this grade level In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: 1 Knowledge of standard medical terminology to interpret physician orders or instructions 2 Knowledge of common physical disabilities and ability to position patients for the examination or treatment 3 Ability to learn the normal and abnormal results for routine procedures to recognize and report obvious abnormalities 4 Ability to operate the equipment to administer routine/standard diagnostic treatment or procedures 5 Ability to perform standard operator maintenance on the equipment including the ability to disassemble, clean, reassemble, and calibrate the machine OR, Education Successful completion of 4 academic years above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with courses related to the occupation, or a bachelor's degree in a major field of study appropriate to medical instrument technician functions GS-06 Medical Instrument Technician (Electroencephalography) Experience At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the positions to be filled In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: 1 Knowledge of basic medical terminology, neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, and EEG interpretation 2 Ability to position patients for the examination or treatment including using standard alternate positions for patient with common physical disabilities 3 Ability to operate the appropriate EEG equipment to administer routine, standardized diagnostic or treatment procedures 4 Knowledge of normal and abnormal results to recognize and report obvious abnormalities during procedures 5 Knowledge of universal precautions and basic sterilization methods to clean instruments to prevent the spread of infectious diseases 6 Knowledge of EEG and peripheral equipment to conduct routine maintenance and adjustment checks GS-07 Medical Instrument Technician (Electroencephalography) Experience At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the positions to be filled This would be experience which provided the individual with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to independently conduct difficult but standardized electroencephalography examinations In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: 1 Ability to perform more complex electroencephalography studies such as evoked potential (visual, auditory, somatosensory) and transcranial Doppler studies 2 Knowledge of medication effects related to electroencephalography studies and clinical situations requiring medication 3 Knowledge of life threatening or medically emergent testing or patient situations 4 Ability to recognize artifacts (patient or environmental) and document, eliminate, or take proper measures to monitor the artifact GS 08 Medical Instrument Technician (Electroencephalography) Experience At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the positions to be filled This would be experience which provided knowledge of the more complex procedures, the pharma- cology related to this occupation, and knowledge of related acute disorders and diseases and their effects on organs and methods of treatment In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: 1 Ability to interpret testing data to evaluate critical information for surgeons and other medical staff during testing procedures 2 Knowledge of anatomy and physiology of the nervous system and the ability to understand the relationship of EEG and evoked potential testing in detecting states of disease and health 3 Knowledge of behavior assessment during seizure attacks in order to insure adequacy of recordings during seizure discharges 4 Knowledge of a variety of advanced EEG equipment and peripheral equipment such as equipment for brain mapping, video EEG telemetry systems with seizure detection computers, and spike analysis software 5 Knowledge of anticonvulsant medications and their effects on the EEG as well as other frequently used pharmaceuticals 6 Ability to adapt neurodiagnostic devices, parameters, and procedures to complex, unusual, and often critical situations Preferred Experience: Graduate of Neurophysiology technical school - Assoc degree or equivalent Certification by ABRET or equivalent - R.EEG T is desired Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-08 The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-04 to GS-08 Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. >5c143e31-5e48-4549-b2d185386