Duties

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Cardiologist will be responsible for, but not limited to the following duties:

• Generalized duties of a staff heart failure cardiologist involves a focus on the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of many different heart and blood vessel conditions, but specifically focusing on advanced heart failure, cardiogenic shock, and assessing candidates for advanced heart failure therapies.
• Attend on Cardiology Inpatient Service and outpatient clinics; interpret EKGs, Holter monitors, Stress EKGs, and perform other procedures as appropriate and attend medical staff meetings; performance of chart reviews; coordinate with other providers regarding patient care issues; ensure complete documentation in the electronic health record; perform history and physicals within 24 hours of request; perform outpatient encounters; document consult notes; and process new and renewal prescriptions.
• Confer with cardiac surgeons when major surgery is deemed necessary.
• Duties specific to the heart failure and transplant cardiologist in this position will include interpretation of transthoracic echocardiography and stress echocardiography, interpretation of electrocardiograms , diagnostic catheterization to include hemodynamic assessments, endomyocardial biopsy (if appropriate / desired), to interpret CPET (cardio-pulmonary exercise stress testing), to staff outpatient cardiology clinics, to provide cardiology consult services as scheduled on both an inpatient and outpatient basis.
• Perform cardioversions on both an inpatient and outpatient basis.
• Administrate moderate sedation for procedures such as transesophageal echo and/or cardioversion.
• Participate in the expanded use of clinical video telehealth (VVC and CVT)/electronic consultation (e-Consult), as well as in person clinics in VISN 15 Eastern Orbit facilities to improve access to cardiology care.
• Share call with other Cardiologists. Call is for 1-2 weeks at a time, with coverage of inpatient consults during that week and weekend along with cardiology fellows.
• Expertise in establishing and running a CPET program, or an advanced cardiac computer tomography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging programs is desirable.
• Timely documentation is necessary in all areas in accordance with departmental policy.
• Maintaining professional competency, courtesy, and flexibility to provide the necessary services of this specialty to our Veteran population.
• May also be asked to serve on committees, participate in quality assurance programs, assist facility in meeting established performance measures in the areas of Cardiology and such other duties as assigned by the Chief of Medicine.
• All administrative work should be completed in a timely fashion.
• The Cardiologist will participate in inpatient and outpatient quality care, teaching, and research related to cardiovascular diseases. Candidate will apply national and VA guidelines to patient screening, surveillance, and management of cardiovascular diseases. Position requires candidate to work as an attending physician, responsible for supervising and teaching physician assistant students, medical students and residents rotating on cardiology services; and for supervising and teaching Cardiology Fellows.

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

Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Available to highly qualified individual.

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 $3,500 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: 7:30 am - 4:00 pm

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Requirements

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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 (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation/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.
• 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 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 accrediting bodies for graduate medical education, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) or American Osteopathic Association (AOA), in the list published for the year the residency, or fellowship if applicable, was completed; OR
  • (2) One year of post medical school training (internship, first year of residency, or transitional year residency) approved by ACGME or AOA followed by two years of post-training independent practice (performing under a full and unrestricted license) in the United States; OR
  • (3) Non-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of three years of verified independent practice in the United States (performing under a full and unrestricted license) performing duties related to the position they are applying for (United States fellowships would be creditable towards this requirement), 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.
  • Exceptions:
    
    • 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 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.
    • In rare and unusual circumstances, the Facility Director can submit a memo to the VISN Director through the VISN Chief Medical Officer, who may approve requests for reasonable exceptions to the residency training requirement for Physicians whose composite record of experience, accomplishments, performance, and qualifications warrant such action.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.

Additional Requirement:

Preferred Experience:

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

Physical Requirements: In Accordance with VA Directive and Handbook 5019. The Physical requirements of this position include the following tasks which may be performed intermittently: lifting of up to 10 lbs., sitting (4 hours), standing (2 hours), walking (2 hours), bending/stooping (1 hour), twisting (1/2 hour), simple grasping (4 hours), fine manipulation (6 hours), reaching above the shoulder (1/2 hour), and operating machinery (1/2 hour).

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:

1. Schools of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for the year in which the degree was granted.
2. Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) for the year in which the degree was granted.
3. For foreign medical graduates not covered in (1) or (2) above, confirmation must be made that the medical school meets (or met) Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) eligibility requirement for year 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.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency