Physician - Hematology/Oncology

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.

We are looking for a skilled Physician - Hematology/Oncology at the Richmond Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Richmond, Virginia. The incumbent physician is expected to provide comprehensive patient care in the form of consultative, and inpatient and outpatient hematology/oncology patient care including monitoring parental and oral anti-cancer therapy administration at the Central Virginia VA Health Care System (CVHCS). The incumbent is accountable to the Chief of Cancer Center Service assuring the most effective delivery of care in services within Medical Service.

The Richmond VA Medical Center is a level 1a 349-bed facility offering primary, secondary, and tertiary health care in medicine, surgery, neurology, rehabilitation medicine, intermediate care, acute and sustaining spinal cord injury, skilled nursing home care, and palliative care. There are four community-based outpatient clinics located in Charlottesville, Fredericksburg, Emporia and Spotsylvania County, Virginia, and a strong affiliation with the Medical College of Virginia.

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

Recruitment/Relocation Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Authorized to a qualified applicant.
Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): The position is eligible for the EDRP. Learn more.
EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact Ms. Monique Head at monique.head@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

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

• Interpret EKGs
• Use of thrombolytic agents
• Interventions such as thoracentesis, paracentesis, joint aspirations foley catheter placement, nasogastric tube placement as indicated.
• Bone marrow aspiration and biopsy
• Administration of chemotherapy, targeted therapies, immunotherapies to treat cancer via oral, intrathecal, intraperitoneal, intrapleural, and other routes.
• Manage and supervise therapeutic phlebotomy.
• Collaborate with midlevel providers and physician colleagues with clear communication and documentation.
• Participate in the educational programs for the section personnel as well as the medical staff.
• Participate in monitoring the quality, safety and appropriateness of patient care, both at the Section and facility level. Miscellaneous activities of the Cancer Center Service inclusive.
• Demonstrate ethical conduct and serve as a positive role model to others at all levels of the organization.
• Participate in local or central IRB approved clinical research.
• Initiate investigator-initiated studies after obtaining appropriate approval from local/central IRB, IACUC and/or Research and Development (R&D) committees.
• Conduct research in compliance with federal, e.g., VA office of research and development guidelines for human subject and/or laboratory research.
• Conduct research in compliance with local regulation as set out by ACOS Research and the R&D committee.
• Maintain up to date Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) certification for human subject and/or animal research.
• Collaborate with clinical trials office staff and physician colleagues with clear communication and documentation.

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:

• Research background with cancer center for hematology oncology.
• Maintain Current BLS required.
• Strong preference will be given to candidates who have completed formal training in early-phase trials or a preeminent clinical trials workshop, such as the ASCO/AACR Methods in Clinical Cancer Research Workshop, regional ESMO Clinical Trial Workshops, or comparable competitive programs that demonstrate competency in clinical trial design, conduct, and execution.

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

Physical Requirements:
The physical requirements of the employee will be in accordance with VA Directive and Handbook 5019. The position requires potentially long periods of continuous walking, standing, pushing, pulling, stooping, bending, and twisting. The position requires visual acuity (corrective lenses permitted), keen hearing (hearing aid permitted), clear speech, and manual dexterity of both hands.

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.