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. 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 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 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), b) OR [(2) Those approved by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA),OR (3) Other residencies (non-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of five years of verified practice in the United States), 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. 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 or fee-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. Proficiency in spoken and written English. Preferred Experience: Preferred Board in Psychiatry Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Physical Requirements: Use of fingers, walking (up to 4 hours), standing (up to 4 hours), ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously, far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other eye, hearing (aid permitted). Environment Factors, working closely with others, working with hands in water (frequent hand washing), working around moving objects and vehicles, protracted or irregular hours of work. Drive a motor vehicle. ["Major duties and responsibilities include: Performing psychiatric evaluations for a diverse population, including geriatric and medically ill Veterans, who have mental illness and have psychosocial issues. Providing a full range of therapeutic interventions including diagnostic assessment, medication evaluation and management, suicide risk assessments, crisis intervention, and overall care of patients with psychiatric disorders in this setting. Ensuring practice of psychiatric medicine is consistent with current standards of geriatric psychiatry care, TJC, CARF, HIPPA, VA policies and procedures, clinical practice guidelines, national statutes and regulations, medical record documentation, and mandatory continuing education. Orders diagnostic tests and consultations, and discriminates between normal and abnormal findings and makes appropriate treatment decisions. The Psychiatrist may serve as a mental health team leader with responsibilities for coordinating consults and triage of consults. Psychiatrist will be expected to participate in the treatment team meetings and collaborating with multidisciplinary team members. Essential job responsibilities also include after hours on-call duties/availabilities (1630-0800), and tour of duties as assigned on weekends and holidays (0800-1630) Supervising and educating psychiatric residents and medical students, as assigned. Procedures, including timeliness standards for documentation and proper patient checkout procedures (e.g., entering diagnostic and procedure codes, and timely closing out of all patient encounters) Participating in other committee and administrative assignments as instructed. Areas which the psychiatrist is assigned and has clinical privileges to practice may include Mood D/O, anxiety, psychosis, PTSD, substance abuse, neurocognitive D/O and other psychiatric disorders in various clinical settings (outpatient, inpatient, ED, Medical Surgical Units) Contract Buy Out Program: This position may be eligible for the Physician / Provider Contract Buy Out Program (CBOP), which authorizes VHA to buy out service contracts (Locum agreements, loan repayments, sign-on bonus contracts, Physician-owned practices) in exchange for employment at certain rural or highly rural facilities for a period of obligated service (minimum 4 years). For additional information and eligibility requirements, contact the VHA Contract Buy Out Program Manager at vacontractbuyoutprog@va.gov VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. VHA Physician Total Rewards. Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): May be authorized to highly qualified applicant Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): Learn more. EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact David Billingsley @david.billingsleyjr@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-Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm (may include evenings, weekends, holidays, and on-call responsibilities).(Note: Work schedules are determined and approved by the supervisor. The incumbent may be required to work various shifts on a permanent or temporary basis based on facility/patient care needs)."]
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.