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Posted: January 9, 2026 (5 days ago)

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Orthopedic Technician

Veterans Health Administration

Department of Veterans Affairs

Fresh

Salary

$50,460 - $65,599

per year

Closes

January 19, 2026

GS-7 Pay Grade

Base salary range: $41,966 - $54,557

Typical requirements: 1 year specialized experience at GS-6. Bachelor's degree with superior academic achievement or 1 year graduate study.

Note: Actual salary includes locality pay (15-40%+ depending on location).

Job Description

Summary

This job involves helping orthopedic doctors by applying casts, assisting with small surgeries, removing stitches, dressing wounds, and giving injections to patients in a veterans' hospital.

It requires working closely with patients, explaining procedures simply, and sometimes helping in other areas like hospital wards or x-ray rooms.

A good fit would be someone with hands-on medical support experience who is patient, physically active, and comfortable in a fast-paced healthcare setting.

Key Requirements

  • One year of specialized experience at GS-6 level or equivalent, including applying casts, assisting minor surgeries, dressing wounds, removing sutures, and positioning for x-rays
  • One full year of graduate education or internship directly related to orthopedic or medical technician work
  • Time-in-grade: 52 weeks at GS-6 for current federal employees, with SF-50 proof
  • Strong patient care skills, including explaining procedures and collecting clinical data
  • Technical competence in orthopedic procedures and tools like K wires and Steinmann pins
  • Ability to stand, walk, bend, lift, and stoop extensively; use body mechanics for patient handling
  • Experience in ordering supplies and working in healthcare settings like wards or radiology

Full Job Description

Orthopedic Technician assist in the Orthopedic Lab applying casts, assisting with minor surgical procedures, removing sutures, dressing wounds and assisting with the administering of injections.

Orthopedic Technicians work closely with patients and must be able to give a detailed but limited explanation of the process of the procedures being preformed.

Orthopedic Technicians may be required to perform duties in other occupational areas such as wards and radiology.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/19/2026.

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-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-6. 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.

If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement.

In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.

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.

INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT: 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 requires application of the knowledge, methods, and techniques of the position to be filled.

In addition to the IOR, candidates must meet the specialized experience below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-6 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Specialized experience is defined as applying casts, assisting with minor surgical procedures, ordering supplies, dressing wounds, removing sutures, K wires, steinmann pins, positioning patients for x-rays.

OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience.

To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have one full year of graduate education or internship directly related to the work of the position.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Clinical Data Collection/Documentation Patient Care Technical Competence 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. Works with patients requiring regular and recurring bending, lifting, stooping, stretching and similar activities.

Uses principles of body mechanics and obtains assistance when needed. Uses protective measures and techniques in managing disturbed behavior.

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/.

Major Duties:

Major duties include, but are not limited to: Assisting licensed personnel with the delivery of care to patients with complex and specialized care needs.

Perform treatments and interventions both surgical and non surgical Perform wound care (i.e.

bandaging, application of dressings, and wound measurements) Assist licensed staff with preparing patients for medical evaluation, setting up equipment, passing instruments and providing treatment during in-person or virtual visits Application of casts, splints, braces along with patient education Provide patient education within the scope of care or while providing an intervention (i.e.

cast care, post injections, and doing braces) Reviewing upcoming clinics to determine if the veteran has the appropriate imaging prior and triage appropriateness of appointment Perform observation-based screening and collection of patient information in collaboration with licensed personnel Assist with daily clinic flow Inventory: maintain, order, and communicate Teach proper use and safety with durable medical equipment Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 7:00am-3:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Orthopedic Technician/PD07267A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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Posted on USAJOBS: 1/9/2026 | Added to FreshGovJobs: 1/10/2026

Source: USAJOBS | ID: CBTG-12862714-26-AF