Summary The Health Technician (Optometry) performs a range of standard, but complex, optical duties, diagnostic ophthalmic procedures, and patient education. This includes extensive optical duties to include performing glasses measurements, fittings, ordering, dispensing, adjusting, and repair of ophthalmic lenses and eyewear. They are responsible for generating important and complex diagnostic procedures to produce information to be used by the eye clinic licensed providers with whom they work. Duties Duties listed are for GS-7, lower graded duties will differ in scope and oversight.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Performs optical functions including spectacle fitting, ordering, adjustment, repair; able to transpose prescriptions from plus to minus cylinder, triage optical/spectacle complaints, measure for properly fitting frames for monovision, bifocal, trifocal, and progressive addition lenses and coordinates with prosthetics and fabrication laboratory for orders and corrections as needed.
- Independently provide direct patient care services related to patient education, verification and troubleshooting of ophthalmic lenses and eyewear.
- Educates the patient on lens material, lens design, frames, tints and coatings that they are eligible to receive.
- Assists patients in the selection and fitting of properly fitting standard and safety eyewear frames and properly adjust eyeglasses for comfortable fit and proper alignment of the optical centers and segment heights for optimal visual performance.
- Have the skills to repair broken or defective eyeglasses and will triage patient concerns by manual or automated lensometry verification and trouble shooting.
- Performs duties such as measuring and recording visual acuity, obtaining accurate potential acuity meter, laser interferometry, contrast sensitivity or other specialized visual acuity measurements.
- Evaluates pupillary light responses and measure pupil size, determine the presence or absence of fusion and perform stereoacuity measurements. The health technicians (optometry) perform Amsler grid testing, administer eye drops under the supervision of an eye care provider (optometrist or ophthalmologist), perform basic tonometry and estimate the anterior chamber depth with a penlight or slit lamp biomicroscope.
- The technicians are skilled in properly reading a basic spectacle prescription using an automated or manual lensometer, obtaining accurate autorefractometry and keratometry measurements, performing confrontation and standard automated visual field testing and administering and scoring basic color vision tests.
- Adept at measuring and recording corneal thickness by pachymetry as well as performance of advanced corneal measurements, exophthalmometry, tear testing and ocular imaging.
- Provides day-to-day direction of volunteers and optometry trainees to ensure that program goals are met, that clinical care flows smoothly, and assigned tasks are completed in a timely manner.
- Assists in creating, implementing, and preparing written and oral reports for the completion of continuous or problem focused Process Improvement and Quality Assurance processes.
- Assists in training and in-service programs to aid in the instruction of nurses and physicians on procedures, operation and/or maintenance of new and existing medical equipment.
- Assists scheduler in scheduling patients for exams at the VAMC to provide prompt medical care.
- Documents the patient's testing results and data into EHMR for co-signature by a staff optometrist or ophthalmologist.
- Assists the program support clerk by responding to telephone calls and visitors to the clinic, determining the purpose of the contact and taking appropriate action.
- Performs patient screening and triage of potentially urgent ocular conditions.
- Assists Veterans and providers with coordination of care between Veterans Affairs and Community Care Programs.
Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional
Work Schedule: 8AM - 4:30PM, Monday - Friday
Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade)
Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience.
Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Telework: Ad-hoc
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 00000
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Available
Qualifications
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. Health Technician (Optometry) candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
- Experience and Education.
- Experience. One year of experience as a health technician or assistant in the health care field demonstrating the applicant's ability to perform the work or by demonstrating a basic understanding of work in the health care field;
- OR
- Education. Successful completion of two academic years above high school with a minimum of 12 semester hours related to health technician/assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant or associate degree, or completion of an independent study course in an optometry related technician or assistant field;
- OR
- Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of experience and education are qualifying. Examples are listed below:
- (a) Six months of experience comparable to the next lower level which demonstrates the knowledge of optometry assistant theory and practices and general understanding of the health technician/assistant duties and one year above high school with a minimum of six semester hours of health technician/assistant or health technician (optometry)/assistant related courses.
- (b) Successful completion of a course for health care technicians or assistants, hospital corpsmen, medical service specialists, or hospital training in a program given by the U.S. Armed Forces, the U.S. Maritime Service, or the U.S. Public Health Service, may be substituted on a month-for-month basis.
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:
Health Technician (Optometry), GS-04.
Experience. None beyond the basic requirements.
Health Technician (Optometry), GS-05.
Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-4).
Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
(a) Knowledge of basic eye anatomy and function.
(b) Ability to obtain, document and record ophthalmic and medical information from patients in order to develop an accurate electronic progress note.
(c) Ability to practice basic hygiene and infection control in a patient care setting.
(d) Ability to follow eye clinic and patient care medical policies and procedures.
(e) Ability to perform minor eyeglasses repairs, such as replacing nose pads and screws.
Health Technician (Optometry), GS-06.
Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-5).
Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
(a) Ability to provide patient education for eye health and/or vision conditions, to include assisting with patient contact lens insertion, removal and hygiene (cleaning and disinfection) care.
(b) Ability to accurately enter into a phoropter the autorefractometry or habitual refractive prescription (i.e., eyeglasses prescription) or lensometer findings, including sphere, cylinder and axis.
(c) Ability to perform patient spectacle fitting and dispensing, including selection of appropriate frame, ophthalmic lenses, interpupillary measurements (distance and near) and proper segment height determination, as well as the ability to transpose sphere, cylinder and axis.
(d) Ability to provide basic triage of patient telephone calls or optometry requests.
(e) Knowledge of ophthalmic medications and supplies needed in the process of restocking the eye clinic exam rooms.
Health Technician (Optometry), GS-07.
Experience. One year of experience comparable to the next lower level (GS-6) which demonstrates the knowledge, skills and abilities related to the duties of the position to be filled.
Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA). In addition to meeting the experience or educational requirements for this grade level, the candidate must fully demonstrate the following KSAs:
(a) Ability to determine preliminary objective estimate and/or refinement of the optical status of the eye, not to include the patient's final subjective refraction.
(b) Ability to triage and manage eyeglasses issues (e.g., measurement of vertex distance, base curve, prism correction, center thickness, slab off, Fresnel prism, decentration, etc.).
(c) Ability to perform accurate assessment of accommodation, near point of convergence and ocular alignment (far and near).
(d) Ability to assist the eye care provider (optometrist or ophthalmologist) with ophthalmic procedures.
(e) Ability to assist with obtaining accurate ocular cultures and smears.
(f) Knowledge and ability to provide advanced patient education for eye health and/or vision conditions.
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-7. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-4 to GS-7.
Physical Requirements: There are no physical requirements for this occupation per OCHCO Communications email to VA Handbook 5019, updated on 4/17/2026. 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/.Requirements
- You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this 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.
- Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
- 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.
- Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation.
- Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
- Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial 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 trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.How you will be evaluated IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.
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.
The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.
It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.
Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.How to apply All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 12/31/2026 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13110369.
- To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.
- Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package.
NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. Other information Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.
During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.
VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.
If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.
Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
