Physician - Hospitalist

The Marion VA Medical Center is seeking a full-time Hospitalist to join Specialty Service! If you would like to explore this opportunity further, please email Physician/Provider Recruiter (PPR) Joanne.Miller2@va.gov for additional information.

The Hospitalist provides comprehensive, high-quality inpatient medical care to hospitalized Veterans within an interdisciplinary team structure. The Hospitalist serves as the primary attending physician for general medicine ward patients, coordinates continuity of care across transitions, supervises clinical trainees, and contributes to quality improvement and patient safety initiatives.

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

Duties Include but are not Limited to:

• Admit and evaluate patients on medical service and intensive care units for diagnosis, treatment planning, and disposition decisions
• Provide primary attending physician coverage for hospitalized Veterans (varying shifts: 12-hour, and overnight MOD assignments)
• Manage acute and chronic medical conditions, medication optimization, and complex medical-surgical co-management patients
• Coordinate care transitions with consultants, specialists, primary care physicians, and post-acute care facilities
• Implement evidence-based protocols and clinical pathways to optimize patient outcomes and length of stay
• Maintain comprehensive, timely documentation in the Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture (VistA) and compliance with all clinical documentation standards
• Respond to rapid response calls and code blue resuscitations as clinically indicated
• Serve as Medical Officer of the Day (MOD) to oversee general medicine service operations, triage transfer requests, manage patient flow, and ensure balanced workload distribution
• Participate in interdisciplinary rounds, case conferences, and care coordination meetings
• Contribute to quality improvement initiatives, clinical pathway development, and performance improvement projects
• Monitor and address patient safety events and provide feedback on process improvements
• Participate in service scheduling, call coverage, and operational planning
• Serve on clinical committees and quality improvement initiatives as assigned
• Contribute to credentialing, privileging, and peer review processes
• Maintain current ACLS and BLS certifications
• Participate in continuing medical education and professional development
• Engage in faculty development activities and academic responsibilities as appropriate to facility structure and mission
• Work collaboratively with nursing, pharmacy, social work, case management, and specialty services
• Coordinate with Veterans integrated care teams for discharge planning and post-acute disposition
• Communicate effectively with primary care physicians regarding ongoing patient management and follow-up
• Participate in huddles and team meetings to align care planning and ensure safe transitions of care

Work Schedule: Full-time. Shifts include 12-hour days, and overnight Medical Officer of the Day assignments. Participation in on-call schedules as determined by facility staffing model

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

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: Board-certified or board-eligible in Internal Medicine or Family Practice.

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

Physical Requirements: This position requires a pre-employment physical. Requires lifting 15-44 pounds; pushing (approx. 2 hours); reaching above shoulder; use of fingers and both hands; walking and standing from 3-5 hours and kneeling. Ability for rapid mental and muscular coordination simultaneously. Near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4. Far visions correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other. Must have depth perception and ability to distinguish basic colors and shades of colors. Hearing aid is permitted.

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, or
2. 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.
3. 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.