Physician (Primary Care)

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 Job Opportunity Announcement provides a mechanism for Vacancies that are currently vacant or may not presently exist but may become available at any point during the opening period of this vacancy announcement. Your application materials will be reviewed and a notice provided reflecting your eligibility. Your application will remain on file through the closing date of this announcement.

Duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Functions as the Physician Team leader of their Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT), Primary Care Services, Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) setting at (MTVAHCS). May perform additional duties (temporary or permanent) as a float provider [Face-to-Face (F2F), Telephone, or VA Video Connect (VVC)] as those duties are assigned.
• Responsible for providing medical care in an outpatient setting following PACT principles. Will routinely provide medical care using F2F, VVC, and/or Telephone appointments. When performing duties as a float provider (F2F or VVC) for remote patients, will provide care to outreach clinics as needed. Float provider duties (temporary or permanent) may require travel to the supported CBOC(s) periodically to cover a provider vacancy.
• Assures that Veterans receive compassionate, efficient and safe patient care in their respective care line.
• Assures that clinical care provided meets all timelines and required documentation as required by VA. Providers must review alerts daily and have no more than 200 alerts at any given time. They must encounter their notes within 72 hours. Encounter errors must be completed within 7 days.
• Participates in multi-disciplinary team meetings to achieve a patient centered, holistic approach for clinical care and needs of the Veteran. This includes daily and weekly huddles with the Physician's respective PACT.
• Leads by example. Attend either by Microsoft Teams or in person all Primary Care statewide meetings and whenever possible, participates in the clinical and teaching activities at MTVAHCS Primary Care statewide meetings.
• Comply with all VA directives and policies related to space management to achieve optimal resource utilization (space, professional and administrative) to maximize clinic utilization within the PACT model.
• Improves quality of care by achieving:

1. Excellence in meeting national and Veterans Integrated Services Network (VISN) 19 patient safety goals.
2. Participate in PACT huddles and manage PACT patients' medical comorbidities with the goal to optimize PACT quality improvement efforts and obtain excellence of Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) metrics.

Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): Learn more.
EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact Jennesa Winey @ Jennesa.Winey@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance
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 8:00am to 4:30pm
Virtual: This is not a virtual position
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: May be Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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: 2 years Primary Care Provider experience.

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

Physical Requirements: The individual must be able to perform all activities of the position without restriction. This position involves considerable standing, walking, stooping, bending, reaching, lifting and turning. It requires repositioning patients and assisting with transferring patients to wheelchairs/stretchers. Mechanical devices when available are required to be used for heavy or difficult to lift patients. The work may involve pushing or lifting weight in excess of 50 pounds and going up and down flights of stairs. The position requires visual and auditory acuity at a level to provide safe and effective nursing care. The positions requires the nurse to work for periods of time with arms above shoulder level or with the neck in a fully flexed or extended position and the ability to physically control or protect him/herself from physically abusive patients.

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.