Surgical Technician

The Surgical Technician (ST) is a member of the surgical team and provides assistance to the surgeon and other team members during surgical procedures. The Surgical Technician participates with the surgical team members in planning and implementing complex procedures under the general supervision of the surgical team. The Surgical Technician Major Duties include but are not limited to: Function as a primary scrub person responsible for handling instruments, supplies and equipment. Set up sterile field with all required items for each procedure. Plan and discuss each procedure with surgical team to ensure all supplies and equipment are available prior to surgical procedures. Prepare, organize and maintain highly complex sterile surgical setups. Observe, respond promptly and anticipate the needs of the surgeon during surgical procedures. Assist with care of the patient, i.e., positioning, prepping, obtaining supplies and transportation to and from the operating room. Provides patient information to the RN/Anesthesia Team for inclusion in the patient's plan of care. Handle all specimens appropriately, including labeling, keeping organized on table and transporting to lab. Assist with preparing skin grafts, suctioning, holding retractors, applying skin stables and cutting sutures. Prepare prosthesis and surgical devices during procedures. Performs non-technical maintenance of equipment to prevent malfunctions. Assists in training residents, medical students, nursing students, operating room technology students, and new Operating Room staff in the operation of equipment, sterile technique, handling of instruments, and OR procedures to include the scrub role in surgical procedures. Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday • Friday, 6:45am-3:15pm or 2:30pm-11:00pm. Includes on-call and weekends. Subject to change due to needs of the facility. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Surgical Technician/PD04157A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/16/2026. Individual Occupational Requirement for Health Aid and Technician Series (0640): 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 required application of the knowledge, methods, and techniques of the position to be filled. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-06 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: experience in an operating room; experience with scrubbing and assisting independently in the surgical specialties (i.e., Cardiac, transplant, orthopedic, neurological); experience with medical instruments, human anatomy, physiology and aseptic technic to prepare and protect sterile field during surgery; sterile technique to include sterilizer operations and tests to determine the effectiveness of sterilization, packaging, storage, and shelf life; handling medical instruments, supplies and equipment during all surgical procedures; performing proper cleaning techniques, as well as the proper handling and rotation of sterile supplies; handling contaminated items, quality control, and personal hygiene, experience of universal precautions and implementing infection control policies and procedures. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have one year of graduate education to substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have one full year of graduate education. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. (COPY OF TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED). OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an equal combination of specialized experience and graduate education. 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/. You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: Duties regularly require extensive period of regular and recurring standing, walking, bending, lifting, pushing, reaching and prolonged stretching to provide easy accessibility of instruments and supplies for the surgeon. Must be dexterous in passing instruments to surgeons without compromising principles of aseptic technique and in a manner requiring little or no effort from the surgeon. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. 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/.