Forwarder Operator Jobs in Wisconsin (NOW HIRING)

Summary
This position is located at the Milo C. Huempfner Outpatient Clinic in Green Bay, WI, and is organizationally aligned under the in the North East Wisconsin Outpatient Clinics (NEWAC) Division at the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center (695) - a Level la Complexity VHA Facility. The primary purpose of this position is to serve as a member of the surgical team of the Outpatient Clinic Surgery Section and provides assistance to the surgeon and other team members during surgical procedures.
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Duties
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DUTIES:

• Functions as a primary scrub person responsible for handling instruments, supplies, and equipment during all outpatient surgical procedures.
• Sets up sterile field with all required items for each procedure such as air-powered equipment, fiber optic equipment, laparoscopic equipment, microscopes, lasers, arthroscopy equipment, urologic equipment, recording devices, and other operating room supplies and equipment.
• Plans and discusses each procedure with surgical professionals and assures that all supplies and equipment ate available prior to the surgical procedure.
• Prepares, organizes, and maintains highly complex sterile surgical setups.
• Observes and responds promptly to each stage of the surgical procedure and anticipates the needs of the surgeon by maintaining a high level of concentration for extended periods of times.
• Utilizes universal precautions and follows all infection control policies and procedures when handling specimens, supplies, and equipment.
• Assists the team members with care of the patient, i.e., positioning, prepping, and obtaining supplies, and transportation to and from the operating room (OR).
• Handles all specimens appropriately, including labeling, keeping organized on table and transporting to lab.
• In conjunction with the circulating Registered Nurse (RN), performs sponge and instrument counts to verify accuracy. Responsible for the accountability for all surgical instruments and equipment during the surgical procedures. Sharps and sponges are handled per policy.
• Calibrates, operates, and maintains (at the user level) a wide variety of physiologic monitoring, measuring, and computing devices to display and record patient's vital parameters. These may include, but are not limited to, continuous EKG and 12 lead for diagnostic interpretation, non-invasive pressure, temperature, and various respiratory function measurements.
• Maintains competency on starting, maintaining, and discontinuing intravenous catheter lines.
• Maintains competency in basic EKG rhythm interpretation to allow for recognition of change and/or potentially life threatening condition and notification of the RN or physician.
• Collects and labels blood specimens obtained though IV lines or venipuncture, for forwarding to the lab or to other medical laboratories.
• Obtains and transports specimen and cultures, as directed by the physician or nurse including MRSA nasal swabs.
• Initiates, maintains, and discontinues physiologic monitoring systems. Detects abnormal or changing rate, rhythm, or condition of patients being monitored and reports changes to RN.
• Assists with patient care duties under the direction of the RN or physician, including personal care, positioning, transfers, answering call lights, and discharge.
• Assists with pre and post-operative and procedural care.
• Documents all care given and data obtained from physiologic monitoring, including glucometer readings and weights, in the electronic medical record.

Work Schedule: 8:00am to 4:30pm; Monday through Friday
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Surgical Technician/PD25351A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized
Physical Requirements: The physical and mental status of the Surgical Technician should enable them to perform all their duties under normal and emergent conditions. The evaluation of an individual's ability to perform efficiently and without hazard to self or others will encompass a composite consideration of physical, mental, and emotional ability as related to realistic requirements for the duties and responsibilities to be assumed. Physical components of the position require lifting of light to heavy objects/patients ranging from under 15 pounds .to 35 pounds as well as light carrying (under 25 pounds) is required. The employee must be able to walk, stand, and bend for periods up to 7 hours/day. Pushing up to 30-pound force is required to move patient carts around the work unit. Visual acuity with or without corrective devices must be sufficient to allow for visualization of suture needle to size 4.8mm. Incumbent must have ability to distinguish low range sound and/or voice in surgical suite environment with competing background conversations, alarms, and equipment noise. Occasional kneeling is required for some operating room procedures. The incumbent, when assigned in the scrub role, must be dexterous in passing instruments to surgeons without compromising elements of sterile technique and in a manner requiring little or no effort from the surgeon.
Requirements
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Conditions of employment

• 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
• 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.
Qualifications
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 08/21/2026.
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.
GS-7 Specialized Experience: At least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-6) in the Federal Service that has given you the particular knowledge, skills and abilities required to successfully perform the duties of a Surgical Technician. Specialized experience includes but is not limited to: utilizing knowledge of highly technical medical instruments, human anatomy, physiology, and aseptic techniques to prepare and protect sterile field during surgery; possess in-depth knowledge of universal precautions and know how to implement infection control policies and procedures; comprehensive knowledge of all appropriate names, uses, physical characteristics, function, and processing procedures for the full range of surgical supplies and equipment; thorough understanding of anatomy, physiology, and protocol to select the correct instruments for a procedure, anticipate the needs of the surgeon during the procedure, and on a regular and recurring basis recognize and respond to a variety of critical situations, including emergency and life threatening condition; knowledge of operation and function of all surgical instruments and equipment, testing procedures to assure all equipment works, and proper postoperative decontamination procedures.
OR
GS-7 Education: Successfully completed one (1) full year of graduate education (18 semester hours) or an internship in course matter that must include courses directly related to the work of the Surgical Technician position such as anatomy and physiology, surgical technology, aseptic techniques, etc. Transcripts Required
OR
Combination of Education and Experience GS-7: Combinations of successfully completed graduate level education and specialized experience, as described above, which meet the total experience requirements for this grade level. The education portion must include graduate courses directly related to the work of the Surgical Technician position. This education must have been obtained in an accredited college or university.
NOTE: Transcripts (unofficial or official) must be submitted with your application materials.
Preferred Experience: Ideal candidate will possess a minimum of 2 years of surgical/gastroenterology technician experience.
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/.
Education
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/.
Additional information
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.
Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.
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. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. 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.
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To b