Duties

This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until September 30, 2022 or until positions are filled, closed or canceled. Applications will be reviewed weekly until the position is filled. The job announcement may close without prior notification.

This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (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. 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 .

The following duties are required of the position; they include, but are not limited it:

• Provides a full range of psycho-diagnostic services including assessment and the most appropriate psychotherapeutic techniques in providing quality care.
• Performs psychiatric evaluations for a diverse population of patients of males, females, geriatric, and post deployment combat veterans who are mentally ill and have psychosocial issues that may include homelessness, unemployment, and poor family support network.
• Provides a full range of therapeutic interventions to units/programs in the Medical Center to which the psychiatrist is assigned and has clinical privileges to practice including diagnostic assessment, medication evaluation and management, suicide risk assessments, crisis intervention, and overall care of patients with psychiatric disorders, including depression, anxiety, psychosis, PTSD, substance abuse, and other psychiatric disorders in various clinical settings including the outpatient, inpatient, emergency department, primary care/mental health integrated programs, and hospital ward settings.
• The Psychiatrist may serve as a mental health team leader with responsibilities for coordinating consults and triage of specialty clinic referrals.
• Participates effectively in team meetings and treatment planning conferences and collaborates with multidisciplinary team members which enhances coordination of comprehensive patient care.
• Orders diagnostic tests and consultations and discriminates between normal and abnormal findings and makes appropriate treatment decisions.
• Ensures that the practice of psychiatric medicine is consistent with Joint Commission, CARF, VA policies and procedures, clinical practice psychiatric guidelines, VISN standards, national statutes and regulations, medical record documentation, mandatory continuing education, and HIPPA policies.
• Participates in supervision and teaching in support of the psychiatric residency program, performs on call duties
• Involved in performance improvement and quality assurance initiatives.
• Provides leadership guidance and consultation to staff.
• Involved in the supervision and teaching of psychiatry residents and other trainees assigned to unit as appropriate.
• Serves as a consultant to other medical center staff and trainees and assist in implementation of treatment plan as appropriate regarding their patients.
• Is responsible for timely completion of all clinical charting and documentation required by the Medical Center or healthcare system, as appropriate.
• Plans and oversees the completion of personal research programs, designed to provide information regarding program planning and relevant treatment approaches.
• Other duties as assigned

Work Schedule: Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm, (May include evenings, weekends, holidays, and on-call)

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

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Available for highly qualified/eligible candidates.
Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): EDRP Authorized: EDRP is authorized. Contact Lisa Chabarria at Lisa.Chabarria@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance
Pay: Competitive salary, annual performance bonus, regular salary increases
Paid Time Off: 50-55 days of annual paid time offer 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
Malpractice: Free liability protection with tail coverage provided
Contract: No Physician Employment Contract and no significant restriction on moonlighting

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.

Qualifications

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.
• Education: 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.
• Licensure: 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.
• Language Proficiency: Proficiency in spoken and written English.

Preferred Experience: Board Certified or Board Eligible in Psychiatry preferred.

Reference: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-2 Physician Qualification Standard. This can be found in the local Human Resources Office.

Physical Requirements: Moderate lifting (15-44 lbs.); Light carrying (under 15 lbs.); Straight Pulling (up to 2 hours); Pushing (up to 2 hours); Reaching above shoulder; Use of fingers; Both hands required; Walking (up to 3 hours); Standing (up to 3 hours); Kneeling (up to 1.5 hours); Repeated bending (up to 2 hours); Near vision correctable at 13" to 16"; Far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other; Hearing (aid permitted); Clear speech.

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 an institution whose accreditation was in place 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.

For foreign medical graduates not covered in (1) or (2) above, facility officials must verify with the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) that the applicant has met requirements for certification, and must obtain a copy of the ECFMG certificate, if claimed by the applicant. [If the applicant does not claim an ECFMG certificate, facility officials must still confirm that the medical school meets (or met) ECFMG eligibility requirements for the year the candidate 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.

Additional information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

Financial Disclosure Report:Not required

To ensure compliance with an applicable preliminary nationwide injunction, which may be supplemented, modified, or vacated, depending on the course of ongoing litigation, the Federal Government will take no action to implement or enforce the COVID-19 vaccination requirement pursuant to Executive Order 14043 on Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees. Therefore, to the extent a VA job announcement includes language requiring applicants to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 pursuant to Executive Order 14043, that requirement does not currently apply to this Job Announcement. VA may request information regarding your vaccination status, if selected, for the purposes of implementing other workplace safety protocols, such as masking, physical distancing, testing, travel, and quarantine.

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application .