Summary
The Birmingham VA Health Care System is recruiting for a full-time Physician Assistant (General Surgery) located within Surgical Service.
Duties
Clinical responsibilities center around pre-operative, intra-operative, and post-operative care, as well as general surgical patient management. Duties include, but are not limited to: Pre-Operative Obtain comprehensive histories and perform physical exams. Order and interpret diagnostic tests (labs, X-ray, MRI, CT, etc.). Educate patients on the surgical plan, risks, preparation, and postoperative expectations. Complete pre-operative documentation and surgical clearance. Intra-Operative First-assist in surgeries (retraction, suturing, hemostasis, handling instruments, robotic or laparoscopic support depending on training). Maintain communication with OR staff to ensure proper workflow. Perform simple surgical procedures as delegated (incision & drainage, wound management, casting/splinting, etc.) Post-Operative Round on inpatients and assess recovery progress. Manage postoperative care (dressings, drains, sutures/staple removal, wound checks). Address consults, triage postoperative issues, and manage complications. Provide patient education on discharge and home care. General Clinical Care Diagnose and treat adult patients in clinic and inpatient settings. Prescribe medications as delegated. Perform therapeutic procedures (injections, aspirations, minor wound care). Conduct inpatient and ER consults, determine need for admission. Administrative Duties of a General Surgery Physician Assistant Administrative responsibilities support surgical workflow, team coordination, compliance, documentation, and patient throughput. Clinical Documentation & Compliance Document histories, progress notes, operative notes, and discharge summaries. Complete and route consults and ensure required clinical information is present. Manage encounters to ensure completion by end of clinical day. Care Coordination Coordinate inpatient rounds, surgical follow-up, and multidisciplinary communication. Facilitate referrals and consults to specialty and tertiary services. Organize transitions of care (discharges, transfers to higher levels of care). Clinic & Workflow Operations Assist in scheduling appropriate surgical or clinic appointments. Manage wait lists and ensure timely patient scheduling. Oversee clinic flow and troubleshoot delays. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Telework: Available; Ad-hoc only. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Salary Range: Physician Assistant-I (PA-I): $120,966 - $160,874 Physician Assistant-II (PA-II): $131,852 - $175,357 Physician Assistant-III (PA-III): $143,719 - $191,140
Requirements
All qualified candidates encouraged to apply. Open to U.S. Citizens but non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens. 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. 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.
Education
Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
How you will be evaluated
IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment. NOTE: A formal pay-setting process will be used to determine your salary. The salary may be at any point in the range listed for this vacancy. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.