This position serves as a Pain Management Physician within the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Service at the Erie VA Medical Center. The primary function of this position is providing a range of pain management services to our nation's Veterans! 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. Additional Requirements: Completion of an ACGME or AOA accredited Residency training program in anesthesiology, neurology, or physical medicine and rehabilitation. AND Completion of an ACGME or AOA accredited Fellowship training program in Pain Medicine. Applicant must provide documentation of provision of pain medicine services representative of the scope and complexity of the privileges requested during the previous 24 months (waived for applicants who completed training during the previous year). Preferred Certification: Current certification in Anesthesiology, Neurology, or Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation from the American Board of Medical Specialties or American Osteopathic Association board is preferred but not required. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Physical Requirements: See VA Handbook 5019 ["VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. VHA Physician Total Rewards. 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 Work Schedule: Monday - Friday: 7:30am - 4:00pm Compressed Schedule: May Be Authorized Telework: Occasional Telework May be Available at Management's discretion Major Duties include but are not limited to: Evaluation, treatment, and rehabilitation of patients with non-procedural pain (i.e., chronic and cancer pain) including the use of image guidance. Perform history and physical examination. Evaluate, diagnose, provide treatment, consultation and medically manage patients with procedural and non-procedural pain complaints (i.e., chronic and cancer pain). Provides patient care to Veterans in the area of Pain Management in the form of consultative care. Provides medical diagnostic evaluation and initial assessment of patients which include but are not limited to completing a focused history, performing necessary physical examinations; as well as ordering, interpreting and integrating the results of pertinent laboratory investigations. Ensures adequate access to care is available for both newly consulted as well as returning patients via care provided in outpatient Pain Management clinics. The physician will provide a mix of both consultative and follow-up patient care as warranted by Veteran demand. Provides interventional pain management procedures on both an inpatient and outpatient basis, including, but not limited to, the following. Facet injections/Medial branch blocks with imaging guidance. Lumbar Epidural injections Neuroablation (all modes) in a procedural area where the applicant has existing interventional privileges Peripheral nerve block Trigger point injections Use of Botox for migraine headaches Sacroiliac joint injections Use of radiofrequency ablation (all modes) in an interventional procedural area where the applicant is a concurrent privilege holder. Utilization of activator to perform adjustment/manipulation/mobilization when performing trigger point injections, greater and lesser occipital nerve injections if indicated Greater and lesser occipital nerve root blocks Battlefield Acupuncture Performs other duties as assigned"]
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.
