Biomedical Equipment Support Specialist

Full Job Description

Serves as a Biomedical Equipment Support Specialist (BESS) providing clinical and administrative support to staff, patients, and administrators for all matters of concern relating to the facility wide lifecycle management of medical equipment.

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.

English Language Proficiency: Pharmacists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d).

And Education, Experience, or Certification: Associates or higher degree in the biomedical technology or biomedical engineering field; OR Associates or higher degree in electronics, a field of information technology, or engineering (other than biomedical engineering) AND 1 year of creditable experience; OR Completion of the Department of Defense (DOD) biomedical equipment technician training program; OR Completion of a DOD training program in repair and maintenance of electronic systems or information technology AND 1 year of creditable experience; OR Completion of a biomedical engineering technician or Healthcare Technology Management (HTM) certificate program that included and internship or apprenticeship; OR Completion of a biomedical engineering technician or HTM certificate program that did not include and internship AND 1 year of creditable experience; OR Hold or having ever held certification as a Certified Biomedical Equipment Technician (CBET), Certified Radiology Equipment Specialist (CRES), Certified Laboratory Equipment Specialist (CLES), or Certified Healthcare Technology Manager (CHTM).

Continuous maintenance of certification is not required throughout VHA employment.

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: Biomedical Equipment Support Specialist, GS-11 Experience. One year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.

In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: Knowledge of standards including National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Joint Commission (TJC), and the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) for safe operation of medical equipment and clinical systems.

Skill in using test and calibration equipment including digital multimeters, electrical safety analyzers, defibrillator analyzers, patient simulators, manometers, tachometers, and Local Area Network (LAN) analyzers.

Skill in interpreting a variety of technical data including schematic drawings and wiring diagrams.

Skill in applying networking principles, such as Access Control List (ACL), Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), and Virtual Local Area Networks (VLAN).

Skill in applying cybersecurity standards to medical devices and clinical systems such as Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA), and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) guidelines.

Ability to perform advanced testing to troubleshoot medical equipment and clinical system interfaces.

Ability to maintain medical computers and software, Ability to manage projects involving medical equipment and clinical systems. Assignment.

Employees in this assignment serve as full performance level (FPL) BESSs responsible for managing multiple assignments, organizing, and independently prioritizing their work with minimal supervision.

At this level, BESSs manage medical equipment and clinical systems including installation, planned maintenance, troubleshooting, repair, calibrations, electrical safety inspections, patient safety, cybersecurity, and decommissioning.

They plan, implement, and provide technical and project oversight for medical equipment and clinical systems.

BESSs develop technical requirements, draft requests for proposal (RFP) language, sole-source justifications, and statements of work (SOW).

They conduct market research, product evaluations, evaluate contractor performance, and conduct pre-procurement assessments.

They serve as a Contracting Officer Representative (COR) or Contracting Officer Technical Representative (COTR) to purchase medical equipment, maintenance and repair contracts, and facility projects as needed.

BESSs conduct prepurchase evaluations and address pre-implementation security issues to ensure medical device isolation architecture (MDIA) requirements are met.

They consult with and advise clinical and administrative staff in evaluating medical equipment and clinical systems proposed for purchase.

BESSs perform incoming inspections on medical equipment and systems to determine that all safety regulations, manufacturer's specifications, contract requirements, and needs of users are met, and they initiate corrective action when necessary.

They provide instruction and guidance to end users on proper use and care of equipment including operator-level maintenance of equipment and accessories.

BESSs partner with customers to determine the nature and scope of the customer's issues and needs, provide an appropriate response and applicable solutions, and ensure the customer is apprised of delays and significant steps until completion.

They ensure inventory accuracy of networked medical equipment and clinical systems to identify and mitigate cybersecurity vulnerabilities.

BESSs are responsible for monitoring system backups; data integrity; ensuring network connectivity between systems, servers, databases, and the electronic medical record; and maintain systems security and standards.

In the event of a system failure, BESSs reload operating systems and clinical application software and interface with the Office of Information and Technology (OIT) to keep systems operational.

They use schematic drawings, wiring diagrams, and manufacturer service literature as guidelines to accomplish work.

BESSs use specialized electronic test equipment or software to analyze, evaluate, diagnose, troubleshoot, calibrate, or repair analog and digital microprocessor controlled, computerized, or networked digital systems.

BESSs coordinate and manage vendor services and review work performed to ensure defined specifications are met and documented.

They respond appropriately to hazard alerts and recall notifications concerning medical equipment.

BESSs investigate equipment incidents, cases of equipment damage and abuse, equipment failure reports that cannot be duplicated, and medical device security incidents.

They serve as a member of a Root Cause Analysis (RCA) team as needed.

BESSs determine when health care technology, instrumentation, or systems are obsolete, hazardous, or no longer cost-effective to maintain.

They ensure proper disposal of medical equipment and clinical systems including removal of protected health information (PHI) and hazardous materials.

BESSs document all activities and ensure the data are correctly entered into the Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS).

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-11.

Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment.

A pre-placement physical examination is not required. Major Duties:

Duties include, but are not limited to: Manages the lifecycle of medical equipment and clinical systems.

Troubleshoots medical equipment and clinical systems using a variety of technical data and completes corrective action.

Performs incoming inspections, repairs, and planned maintenance on medical equipment and clinical systems. Documents all work in the Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS).

Responds to and remediates hazard alerts, recall notifications, and incidents concerning medical equipment and clinical systems. Documents all actions in the appropriate system.

Monitors system backups, ensures network connectivity, assist in the mitigation of cybersecurity vulnerabilities, and maintains clinical systems.

Utilizes test equipment in accordance with manufacturer instructions. Manages projects involving medical equipment and clinical systems.

Provides customer support to staff, evaluates issues and needs, responds with solutions, and keeps customers abreast of status.

Educates staff on the safe operation and user-level maintenance of medical equipment and clinical systems. Serves as a Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) and/or purchase card holder.

Complies with applicable standards, policies, procedures, and regulatory requirements. Provides guidance and mentorship to expand professional knowledge and enhance technical skillsets.

Maintains and enhances knowledge in technological advancements through professional development and technical training.

Work Schedule: 7:30 am - 4:00 pm, Monday - Friday Compressed/Flexible: Not Authorized Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized