Physician - Surgery Specialty Care Integrated Clinical Community Director (Chief of Surgery)

St. Cloud VA Health Care System is seeking a Surgery Specialty Care (SSC) Integrated Clinical Community (ICC) Director in St. Cloud, MN. The SSC ICC Director has clinical and administrative oversight of the SSC ICC Service Line. The incumbent must have strong managerial and organizational skills as well as extensive clinical knowledge in the area of surgery.

An incentive is authorized for highly qualified candidates.

The SSC ICC Director provides leadership and management for the Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC), Surgical Service (General Surgery, Orthopedics, Podiatry, Urology, ENT), Anesthesia and Specialty Care (Optometry, Dental and Audiology), ensuring the delivery of high-quality surgical care to our Veterans. This role encompasses administrative, clinical, and educational responsibilities and requires a strong commitment to patient safety, quality improvement, and multidisciplinary collaboration.

MAJOR DUTIES INCLUDE:

• Must be credentialed and privileged in the practice of surgery in an Operating Room setting at the VA medical facility.
• Provides leadership and oversight to ensure effective management of the Facility Surgical Work Group (FSWG) activities.
• Serves as a member of relevant committees and workgroups, representing the surgical service and contributing to facility-wide initiatives.
• Oversees and responds to issues, concerns and deficiencies in clinical outcomes, surgical standards of care, and coordination of surgical care with the VA medical facility.
• Ensues dissemination of information provided by NSO or the VISN leadership to FSWG members and others as appropriate.
• Facilitates and participates in VA medical facility surgical mortality and morbidity review conferences.
• Collaborates with the facility surgical quality nurse to ensure the validity of surgical data entered into the VistA Surgery Package (or equivalent electronic health record surgery platform) for each procedure performed in an operating room.
• Coordinates ongoing functions of the facility surgical quality nurse, including timely VA Surgical Quality Improvement Program (VASQIP) data submission and compliance with other VASQIP requirements.
• Assists in the assessment and management of all faculty, students, residents and staff in the SSC ICC.
• Provides oversight of all items relating to Employee Relations /Labor Relations, Equal Employment Opportunity, patient advocate issues, Joint Patient Safety reports, etc.
• Provides guidance and clinical supervision for the nurse practitioners, nurses, physician assistants, and health technicians assigned to Surgery and Specialty Care (SSC), and Ambulatory Care Services (ASC).
• Monitors and evaluates the performance of surgical staff, promoting professional development and ensuring compliance with VA regulations and standards.
• Assists in the development, implementation, and expansion of programs in the SSC/ASC. Oversees the SSC ICC budget.
• Participates in various facility programs designed to enhance and improve the delivery of patient care services, to include but not limited to Process Improvement Action Teams, Root Cause Analysis, and Peer Review.
• Exhibits leadership in initiating change in patient care programs based on current concepts and findings from evidence-based research and studies.
• Keeps informed of developments in the management treatment of diseases and illness through continuing medical education, both formal and informal.
• Actively participates in external review bodies: Joint Commission, Office of Inspector General, Office of Medical Investigation, Annual Workplace Evaluation and others as appropriate.

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

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): An incentive is authorized for highly qualified candidates.
Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) Authorized: This position may be eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program, based on the area of specialty of the selected candidate. 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. Contact VHA.ELRSProgramSupport@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 to Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm

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 allopathic 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 accrediting bodies for graduate medical education, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) or American Osteopathic Association (AOA), in the list published for the year the residency, or fellowship if applicable, was completed; OR
  • (2) One year of post medical school training (internship, first year of residency, or transitional year residency) approved by ACGME or AOA followed by two years of post-training independent practice (performing under a full and unrestricted license) in the United States; OR
  • (3) Non-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of three years of verified independent practice in the United States (performing under a full and unrestricted license) performing duties related to the position they are applying for (United States fellowships would be creditable towards this requirement), 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.
  • Exceptions:
    • 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 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.
    • In rare and unusual circumstances, the Facility Director can submit a memo to the VISN Director through the VISN Chief Medical Officer, who may approve requests for reasonable exceptions to the residency training requirement for Physicians whose composite record of experience, accomplishments, performance, and qualifications warrant such action.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.

Preferred Experience:

• Board Certified in Surgery
• Strong Leadership Skills
• Strong Communication
• Ability to Build Coalitions

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

Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

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.
2. Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) for the year in which the degree was granted.
3. For foreign medical graduates not covered in (1) or (2) above, confirmation must be made that the medical school meets (or met) Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) eligibility requirement for year 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.

• U.S. Citizenship: non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• 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.
• English Language Proficiency. In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(f), no person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English.
• 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 dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• 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.
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 2-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, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.