Career Center

Summary

The Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System (CAVHCS) is a consolidated health care system that includes VA Medical Centers in Montgomery and Tuskegee Alabama as well as Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC) in Dothan Alabama - Ft. Rucker Alabama - Monroeville - Alabama - Columbus Georgia and Montgomery VA Clinic. This opportunity in Mental Health Service is on a Fee for Service Basis. Compensation will be based on the services provided.

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
• 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.] 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
• 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)
• Grandfathering
• 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
• For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard - but who met the qualifications applicable to the occupation at the time they were appointed - the following provisions apply: (1) Such employees are considered to have met the basic qualification requirements for the purposes of transferring or reassignment to another physician position within VA
• (2) Employees who were appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed - on a temporary or permanent basis - until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard
• (3) If a physician who was retained under this provision leaves the occupation or VA employment - the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry or reemployment
• Physical Requirements: Reaching: This position requires frequent extension of the hand(s) and arm(s) in any direction including above or below shoulder level - including retrieval of needed equipment and supplies
• Standing: This position frequently requires the maintenance of an upright position to perform duties such as those associated with patient care
• Walking: This position requires frequent moving about on foot to accomplish tasks - such as delivering mail
• Lifting: This position requires occasional raising of objects from a lower position to a higher position or the movement of objects horizontally position to position
• Lifting may be done in the movement of equipment or supplies
• Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 25 pounds of force frequently to move objects
• Fingering/hands: This position requires constant writing or otherwise working with fingers and/or hands - including one or both hands to include duties such as entering information into the computer - etc
• Talking: This position requires constant expression of ideas by means of the spoken word - including the provision of information to internal and external contacts - and the sharing of information with co-workers
• Hearing: This position requires constant perception of sounds at normal range - including the reception of oral communication both in person and over the phone
• Repetitive motions: This position requires constant substantial movements (motion) of the wrists - hands - and/or fingers - as is done when entering information into the computer.

Duties

• Duties include - but are not limited to: This physician provides ongoing psychiatric care to a vulnerable population of Veterans in an outpatient setting and provides a full array of psycho-diagnostic - psychotherapeutic and pharmacological management
• They will provide services to Veterans in a BHIP/Outpatient team setting that will include multi-disciplinary approaches
• Outpatient psychiatrists have occasional on call responsibility
• The Outpatient Psychiatrist functions within the Mental Health Service
• Major duties and responsibilities include: Provides psychiatric services to veterans primarily in the Outpatient Mental Health setting in Montgomery
• Additional consulting services as required by service needs may include a need to assess - stabilize - and determine disposition of patients with emergent conditions for veterans admitted to the Inpatient Medical Floor and Emergency Department
• Evaluate - diagnose - treat - and provide consultation to adult patients - presenting with mental - behavioral - addictive or emotional disorders - e.g. - psychoses - depression - anxiety disorders - substance abuse disorders - developmental disabilities - sexual dysfunctions - adjustment disorders or any other diagnosis reflected in the DSM 5
• Assures that appropriate referrals to specialty programs - including community resources - are accomplished
• This may include referrals to other Mental Health Programs (i.e. - Mental Health Clinic - Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Program - Neuropsychology - PTSD Clinic - Mental Health Intensive Case Management - Compensated Work Therapy - Homeless services - Vocational Rehabilitation)
• Ordering of diagnostic - laboratory tests - and prescribing medications
• Including the gathering of history and performance of physical exams - and care to patients in the inpatient and outpatient care setting
• Develop and implement treatment plans plus informing patients of risks - benefits - and alternative treatments and answering all questions
• Participates effectively in team meetings and treatment planning conferences and collaborates with multidisciplinary team members which enhances coordination of comprehensive patient care
• Participates in the provision of Opiate Use Disorder (OUD) and Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) clinics in a dual-diagnosis setting as required
• Participates in the use of clinical practice guidelines - provision of standard of care to patients - and meeting relevant performance measures as mandated by VHA (Veterans Health Administration)
• 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
• On-Call: Weeknight and weekend telephone and on-site on-call duties for either the High Intensity Inpatient Unity (HIPU) at the Tuskegee Campus
• On-call rotations last one week - can be conducted from home - and are usually Friday- Thursdays - including weekends and holidays
• The rotations may include discussion of potential admissions to the inpatient psychiatric unit - evaluating patients requiring seclusion and restraint - evaluating emergent psychiatric consults on the medical/surgical - and rounding on the inpatient psychiatric unit during weekends and holidays
• Pay: Rate is determined by the service provided: Limited to the annual pay received by the President of the United States - currently $400 -000 - per 38 U.S.C. §§ 7410 - 7431 - 3 U.S.C. § 102 - VA Handbook 5007 - Part VII - Chapter 2 - and VA Handbook 5007 Part VIII Chapter 16 & 17