Physician (Gastroenterologist)

The Gastroenterology staff physician should be skilled in providing patient care and in coordinating the activities of other health care providers. He/she should be an effective teacher for fellow staff members house staff medical students and in allied health care disciplines. It is desirable that the
physician have demonstrated research abilities. He/she will be currently licensed in a State Territory or the District of Columbia and should preferable be a certified or qualified for examination by the American Board of Internal Medicine or other appropriate specialty certifying boards.

Duties include the following:

The Gastroenterology staff physician is responsible for providing primary secondary and tertiary care in both hospitalized and outpatient settings identifying patients health problems and designing diagnostic and therapeutic plans to meet these needs. He/she is responsible for coordinating activities of other health service personnel resolving problems affecting patient care and providing appropriate education for the patient/family members regarding the patients care patients illness and its management.

A major percentage of the physicians time will be devoted to patient care. Depending on other activities sufficient time will be allotted to administrative duties.

Procedures:
The Gastroenterology staff physician will be responsible to perform diagnostic and therapeutic upper and lower gastrointerstinal endoscopy and colonscopy procedures.

• Liver Biopsy
• Small Bowel Biopsy
• Dilation of the esophagus (bouginage)
• Esophageal motility
• Upper Gl endoscopy
• Colonoscopy & Flex Sigmoid
• Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography
• Polypectomy
• Laparoscopy (Peritoneosopy)
• Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy
• Laser: Photocoagulation of vessels
• Laser: Tumor Ablation
• Gastric lavage & cytology
• Sclerotherapy of esophageal varices
• Esophageal ligation or banding of varices
• Endoscopic ultrasonography with or without fine needle aspiration biopsy
• Placement of esophageal stent

The incumbent must demonstrate the knowledge and skill necessary to provide patient care appropriate to the age of the patients served. The
incumbent provides patient care which is appropriate to the cognitive emotional and chronological maturation needs of the young adult (age 18-40) middle adult (age 41-65) and older adult (age 66-older) patient.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday (8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)

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

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus):

Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): Learn more.
EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact 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 $1000 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

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.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7 2025 drivers licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• 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).
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the Required Documents section of this announcement.

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 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 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.
• Physical Requirements: See outlined below.
• English Language Proficiency. 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).

• Board Certified/Eligible in Gastroenterology
• Fellowship training in Gastroenterology and Internal Medicine (Residency)
• Three to five years of Gastroenterologist experience preferably in VA or the Department of Defense.
• Advanced skills to provide a full range of Gastroenterology evaluations to determine the type of degree of illnesses within the Gastroenterology scope.