Physician (Pulmonary Section Chief)

About the role

The Physician is assigned to the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System Pulmonary section. The physician will be the Chief of Pulmonology on a rotating schedule covering a variety of clinical services including - but not limited to - the intensive care unit (ICU), inpatient pulmonary consultation service, outpatient pulmonary clinic, and outpatient sleep clinic.

Responsibilities

• Provide senior-level oversight for all inpatient pulmonary and critical care services, ensuring high-quality, evidence-based care for veterans with acute respiratory failure, COPD exacerbations, pneumonia, ARDS, and other complex pulmonary conditions.
• Perform and supervise bronchoscopy, thoracentesis, pleural procedures, and interpretation of chest imaging and pulmonary function tests (PFTs), ensuring competency standards across the section.
• Serve as a clinical leader for emergency response events, ensuring coordinated and timely management.
• Guide collaboration between intensivists, respiratory therapists, hospitalists, and other specialists to optimize care for critically ill patients and streamline care pathways.
• Provide and oversee complex inpatient pulmonary consultations, including advanced lung disease management and coordination for transplant-related evaluations.
• Supervise and deliver comprehensive outpatient pulmonary care for chronic respiratory diseases including asthma, COPD, interstitial lung disease, pulmonary hypertension, and sleep-related disorders.
• Oversee the performance and interpretation of pulmonary function testing, spirometry, and diffusion studies, maintaining high-quality standards and timely reporting.
• Promote patient-centered education initiatives, ensuring veterans receive guidance on disease management, preventive strategies, and long-term respiratory health.
• Expand and supervise telehealth service delivery, including management of home oxygen programs to improve access for veterans.
• Provide strategic leadership for the Pulmonary Section, including staffing, workload management, operational planning, and compliance with regulatory and accreditation standards.
• Ensure availability and quality of outpatient pulmonary procedures such as thoracentesis, coordinating resources to improve access and efficiency.
• Lead quality improvement initiatives, morbidity and mortality reviews, performance metrics, and safety projects within the pulmonary service line.
• Supervise and mentor fellows, residents, and staff, contributing to training curricula, professional development, and academic activities.
• Serve as the primary liaison for pulmonology within medical center leadership meetings, interdisciplinary committees, and system-wide initiatives.

Requirements

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.

Qualifications

• 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).
• 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.

Skills

Proficiency in spoken and written English.

Benefits

VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package including:

• A competitive salary
• An annual performance bonus
• Regular salary increases
• 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)
• A 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 - Fridays 8:00am - 4:30pm Rotating calls / weekends.