Section Chief of Ophthalmology

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply.

This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCMENT. All qualified applicants will be referred to the hiring manager on a weekly basis.

The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

The Section Chief of Ophthalmology is a medical doctor who possesses the advanced training and experience, as well as the license, in diagnosing and treating disorders of the eye. Ophthalmologists are physicians who diagnose and treat diseases of the eye, including glaucoma and cataracts; vision problems such as nearsightedness; and eye injuries. Due to their extensive training, ophthalmologists can often link eye problems to other disorders such as; brain tumors, diabetes, or multiple sclerosis.

The Ophthalmology Section of Surgery Service functions under the overall management of the Section Chief of Ophthalmology. The physician functions within an interdisciplinary staff consisting of physicians, physician extenders, technicians, administrative and clerical staff. He/she is responsible and accountable for ensuring the provision of comprehensive surgical/clinical services and complies with established policies within the Department of Surgery/ Ophthalmology section.

Administrative Duties:

• Attending required staff meetings, communicating up and down the chain of command, and helping prepare heads-up and issue briefs related to adverse patient outcomes at the direction of the Section Chief.
• Clinical Management including indirect patient care: open encounter and open consult maintenance, CPRS documentation requirements, monitoring of clinic management. Maintains involvement in matters concerning clinic productivity, relevant performance measures, Quality and Patient Safety oversight, as well as process improvements (system redesigns).
• The Section Chief of Ophthalmology will work with the Surgical Services Administration team for labor mapping, leave, grid modifications and builds.
• The Section Chief of Ophthalmology will meet with their staff to go over the AES scores and will meet with the GPM team to improve access and all clinical metrics.

Clinical Duties:

• Practitioners are expected to provide patient care that is compassionate, appropriate, and effective for the promotion of health, prevention of illness, treatment of disease, and care at the end of life.
• To ensure practice-based learning and improvement, practitioners are expected to be able to use scientific evidence and methods to investigate, evaluate, and improve patient care.
• Practitioners are expected to demonstrate knowledge of established and evolving biomedical, clinical and social sciences, and the application of their knowledge to patient care and the education of others.
• Practitioners are expected to demonstrate behaviors that reflect a commitment to continuous professional development, ethical practice, and understanding and sensitivity to diversity, and a responsible attitude toward their patients, their profession
• Practitioners are expected to demonstrate both an understanding of the contexts and systems in which health care is provided, and the ability to apply this knowledge to improve optimizing health care.
• Per the direction of the Chief of Surgery. The Ophthalmology department will provide consult and call coverage for the VA Hospital on Ramsey.

The Section Chief of Ophthalmology is under the direct supervision by the Chief of Surgery and the performance appraisal will be done by the Chief of Surgery. The Section Chief of Ophthalmology is responsible for providing the most effective delivery of the added duty of administrative oversight of the ophthalmologic staff and the care they render throughout the medical center while meeting and exceeding compliance standards.

VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. VHA Physician Total Rewards.

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Available to highly qualified candidates
Relocation Incentive: Available to eligible candidates.
EDRP Authorized: Contact Cheryl Lahair at cheryl.lahair@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more.

Pay: Competitive salary, annual performance bonus, regular salary increases
Paid Time Off: 50-55 days of paid time off per year (26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year and possible 5 day paid absence for CME)
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)
Licensure: 1 full and unrestricted license from any US State or territory
CME: Possible $1,000 per year reimbursement (must be full-time with board certification)
Malpractice: Free liability protection with tail coverage provided
Contract: No Physician Employment Contract and no significant restriction on moonlighting

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM

To qualify for this position, you must meet the basic requirements as well as any additional requirements (if applicable) listed in the job announcement. Applicants pending the completion of training or license requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Currently employed physician(s) in VA who met the requirements for appointment under the previous qualification standard at the time of their initial appointment are deemed to have met the basic requirements of the occupation.

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.
• Degree of doctor of medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from one of the schools approved by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the year in which the course of study was completed.
• Current, full and unrestricted license to practice medicine or surgery in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia.
• Residency Training: Physicians must have completed residency training, approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in an accredited core specialty training program leading to eligibility for board certification. (NOTE: VA physicians involved in academic training programs may be required to be board certified for faculty status.) Approved residencies are: (1) Those approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), b) OR
  [(2) Those approved by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA),OR
  (3) Other residencies (non-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of five years of verified practice in the United States), which the local Medical Staff Executive Committee deems to have provided the applicant with appropriate professional training and believes has exposed the physician to an appropriate range of patient care experiences.
  Residents currently enrolled in ACGME/AOA accredited residency training programs and who would otherwise meet the basic requirements for appointment are eligible to be appointed as "Physician Resident Providers" (PRPs). PRPs must be fully licensed physicians (i.e., not a training license) and may only be appointed on an intermittent or fee-basis. PRPs are not considered independent practitioners and will not be privileged; rather, they are to have a "scope of practice" that allows them to perform certain restricted duties under supervision. Additionally, surgery residents in gap years may also be appointed as PRPs.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.

Additional Requirement: Must be board certified.

Preferred Experience: Ophthalmology background and supervisory experience.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

Physical Requirements: The incumbent must be able to perform all activities of the position without restriction. This position may involve standing, walking, stooping, bending, reaching, lifting, and turning. The work may involve going up and down flights of stairs.

Degree of Doctor of Medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in allopathic medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from an institution whose accreditation was in place for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved schools are:

1. Schools of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for the year in which the degree was granted, or
2. Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation of the American Osteopathic Association for the year in which the degree was granted.
3. For foreign medical graduates not covered in (1) or (2) above, facility officials must verify with the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) that the applicant has met requirements for certification, and must obtain a copy of the ECFMG certificate, if claimed by the applicant. [If the applicant does not claim an ECFMG certificate, facility officials must still confirm that the medical school meets (or met) ECFMG eligibility requirements for the year the candidate graduated.]

NOTE: The Under Secretary of Health or designee in the VHA Central Office may approve the appointment under authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 of a physician graduate of a school of medicine not covered above if the candidate is to be assigned to a research, academic, or administrative position with no patient care responsibilities. The appointment will be made only in exceptional circumstances where the candidate's credentials clearly demonstrate high professional attainment or expertise in the specialty area.