Physician - Pulmonologist/Critical 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.

VHA Physician Total Rewards.

Staff Pulmonary/Critical care Physician's Duties & Responsibilities:

1. A progression from Staff Physician to Section Chief of Pulmonary may be considered under the guidance of the current Pulmonary Section Chief, when it is nearing their retirement. You will be encouraged to participate in the development or on-going research, quality improvement and teaching as it relates to your professional interests.
2. As potential Section Chief of Pulmonary, will supervise other Pulmonologists and the APP's in the Pulmonary/Critical Care/Sleep department.
3. Provide in-patient Pulmonary consultation services.
4. Provide general Pulmonary, Critical Care, and sleep consultation and Bronchoscopy services in keeping with good clinical practice and standards of the Pulmonary Section and Medicine Service at the Syracuse Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center and SUNY Upstate Medical University, where you will be given an appropriate academic appointment commensurate with your experience and education.
5. Close supervision and education of the Pulmonary/Critical Care fellows and medical residents in all their clinical activities.
6. Participation in educational activities related to the fellowship and internal medicine residency program.
7. Collaboration with the physician extenders and nursing care providers in the Pulmonary Section.
8. Be a resource for Primary Care providers to assist in the timely care of patients and appropriate referral to Pulmonary, Critical Care and sleep medicine.
9. Provide expertise in multispecialty and patient care related discussions.
10. As a staff physician in the Pulmonary Section, you will be encouraged to participate in the development or on-going research as it relates to your professional interests.
11. Provide in-patient Pulmonary and Critical Care attending services (including procedures within your specialty area of expertise) in rotation within the ICU, and step down inpatient units.
12. Will participate in inter-hospital transfers of patients as needed.
13. Provide outpatient care and perform clinical procedures within the Pulmonary Section.
14. Function as an active member of the Pulmonary Department of the Syracuse Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
15. Maintain General internal Medicine, Pulmonary and Critical Care board certification and training.
16. You will participate in evaluation and interpretation of sleep studies.
17. You will be expected to serve on Peer review, and potentially other committees as requested by the Medical Center Director, Chief of Staff, Service Chief for Specialty Care ICC or the Pulmonary Section Chief.
18. You will be expected to be in compliance with the Medical Staff bylaws and will complete all medical records timely through CPRS (Computerized Patient Record System) in accordance with VA Policies and Regulations.
19. All attending physicians are expected to participate in ongoing process improvements within their specific areas of expertise thereby promoting quality, efficiency, and timely access to care for our veteran patients.
20. All physicians are actively engaged in completing quarterly chart reviews and other quality assurance work within the department.
21. All physicians are expected to attend quarterly General Medical Staff meetings, and Medicine department staff meetings.

Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): This position is eligible for EDRP, a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application. Learn more.
EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact visn2edrpcoordinators@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance.
Pay: Competitive salary, annual performance bonus, regular salary increases. Education and length of practice are considered through a formal pay-setting process to determine the final compensable salary (Base Pay + Market Pay)
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: Full Time, Monday - Friday

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.

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

Physical Requirements: In Accordance With VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

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.