Physician - Deputy Chief of Surgery

Open to Richmond Veterans Affairs Medical Center Only!

The Deputy Chief of Surgery is expected to provide comprehensive patient care and administrative oversight within the Surgery Service at the Central Virginia VA Health Care System (CVHCS). The Deputy Chief of Surgery is responsible for assisting with the oversight for planning, developing, coordinating, directing, and evaluating Surgery Services for a large and complex VA health care system.

The Deputy Chief of Surgery assists with providing administrative, clinical, and programmatic leadership for the Surgery Service to ensure clinical excellence. A primary objective of the Surgery Service leadership is to mentor and lead highly competent, satisfied staff dedicated to providing the highest quality care centered around Veteran needs and optimizing health and well-being. The position provides opportunities in resident/fellow and medical student teaching at all levels in surgery and the allied health fields as well as administrative duties and research.

The Surgery Service at the Central Virginia VA Health Care System (CVAHCS) Medical Center in Richmond, Virginia provides Surgical subspecialty services and inpatient care services to Veterans across central Virginia. The Surgery Service is one of the largest clinical departments at CVAHCS with over 200 employees in multiple subspecialty divisions, including: Cardiac Surgery, Thoracic Surgery, Vascular Surgery, Urology, Podiatry, Surgical Oncology, General Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Otolaryngology, Surgical Gynecology, Neurosurgery, Ophthalmology, and VISOR, Each of these sections has its own special procedures and systems of patient flow and scheduling, quality monitoring and maintenance, and credentialing. As an organization committed to improving access, developing, and sharing best practices, continuously improving Veterans' experiences, fostering employee engagement and work satisfaction, restoring trust and confidence in those we serve, and building together a network of community providers serving Veterans in a coordinated manner, we are excited to welcome new leaders who share our commitment.

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

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

The duties and responsibilities of the Physician - PACT include, but are not limited to the following:

• Determine goals, priorities and direction for the Service and clinic operations and will be responsible for assigning duties to staff within the realm of Medicine for the clinics.
• Conduct regular meetings to keep staff abreast of all clinic business, policies, procedures, goals, priorities, and directions.
• Responsible for the development of position descriptions and competencies for the direct report staff, along with the development and completion of performance standards and appraisals.
• Address grievances, apply disciplinary policies, and nominate incentive awards in all matters concerning Performance and Improvement staff members under the supervision of the Service administration.
• Participate in wider-range and higher-level management functions for Performance and Improvement through participation and planning in operational boards, councils, and committees throughout the medical center.
• Develop and maintain continuing programs in the areas of organizational improvement, continuing education, and other quality improvement activities.
• Assume active leadership at the VISN and/or national level regarding professional, management and health care delivery issues.

Work Schedule: Monday to 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 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:

• Experienced Surgeon
• Experienced leadership role

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

Physical Requirements:
The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.

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.