Physician (Chief - Imaging Service) - Recruitment/Relocation Incentive/EDRP Authorized

About the role

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) and 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 are ineligible to apply.

Qualifications

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.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English: Physicians appointed to direct patient-care positions must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d) and 7407(d).
• Education: 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. Approved schools are:
  • Schools of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for the year in which the degree was granted; OR
  • Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation of the American Osteopathic Association for the year in which the degree was granted; OR
  • For foreign medical graduates not covered above, facility officials must confirm that the medical school meets (or met) Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) eligibility requirements for the year the candidate graduated.
• 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. Approved residencies are:
  • Those approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) in the list published for the year the residency (or fellowship, if applicable) was completed; OR
  • Those approved by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) in the list published for the year the residency (or fellowship, if applicable) was completed; OR
  • 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
  • Non-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of three years of independent practice in the United States (performing under a full and unrestricted license) performing duties related to the position applied for — United States fellowships would be creditable toward this requirement — which the local Medical Staff Executive Committee deems to have provided appropriate professional training and believes has exposed the physician to an appropriate range of patient care experience.
• Licensure and Registration: 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 Exceptions: 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.

Additional Requirement

• Board Certified (or Board Eligible) by the American Board of Radiology (ABR) in one or more of the following specialties/sub-specialties: Diagnostic Radiology, Interventional Radiology and Diagnostic Radiology, Medical Physics (Diagnostic, Nuclear, Therapeutic), Radiation Oncology, Neuroradiology, Nuclear Radiology, Pain Medicine, or Pediatric Radiology.

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

Responsibilities

The Imaging Service Chief is a physician responsible for leadership of Diagnostic Radiology, Interventional Radiology, Nuclear Medicine, and Radiation Oncology Sections for STVHCS. The position includes administrative and clinical duties, and the individual is expected to maintain active clinical practice in Radiology. The roles and responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Providing leadership to the interdisciplinary team for patient care and program development
• Ensuring written policies and procedures are developed in compliance with all applicable accrediting organizations and VHA program offices, standards and requirements, and that they are reviewed and updated as necessary
• Managing service-level quality improvement activities that monitor critical aspects of care
• Continuous program evaluation to ensure quality and appropriateness of care provided to patients
• Continuous surveillance of the professional performance of all individuals in the department who have delineated clinical privileges
• Recommending to the medical staff the criteria for clinical privileges that are relevant to the care provided in the department
• Recommending clinical privileges for each member of the department
• Integrating department or service into the primary functions of the organization
• Coordinating and integrating interdepartmental and intradepartmental services
• Developing and implementing policies and procedures that guide and support the provision of care, treatment, and services
• Recommending sufficient number of qualified and competent persons to provide care, treatment, and services
• Determining qualifications and competence of department or service personnel who are not licensed independent practitioners and who provide patient care, treatment, and services
• Continuous assessment and improvement of the quality of care, treatment, and services
• Maintaining quality control programs and orienting continuing education of all persons in the department or service
• Recommending space and other resources needed by the department or service

Benefits

• 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, and long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
• Licensure: One 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
• Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): May be authorized for highly qualified individual
• Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): EDRP authorized; former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact vhaedrpprogramsupport@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator, for questions/assistance.

Schedule

Monday – Friday, 8:00 am – 4:30 pm