Summary
This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply.
Duties
The Chief Hospitalist is a clinical leadership position that interfaces with the medical center's administrative leadership and works in close collaboration with other clinical services. The Chief Hospitalist guides acceptable evidence-based clinical practice guidelines, remains current in scientific medical advancements and state of the art medical practices, and provides oversight and mentoring to at least four (4) full-time hospitalists. S/he follows appropriate ethical principles, code of conduct, policies and protocols defined by the organization. This position leads the acute medicine service in the Medicine Directorate of the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center (FHCC) in North Chicago, Illinois. FHCC is larger than just a single facility, but rather a system of facilities throughout Northeastern Illinois which provide medical and dental services to U.S. Military Active Duty, Recruits, Veterans, and eligible beneficiaries. The Chief Hospitalist has a broad range of authority with the responsibility for setting the direction of the service, direction and supervision of the hospitalist staff, maintaining professional standards, maintaining quality control standards, identifying quality improvement opportunities and participating in provider patient care and consultation. S/he serves as clinical authority for professional, licensed, and certified hospitalist staff. S/he must demonstrate skills in exercising a high degree of initiative, judgment, discretion, and decision-making to achieve organizational objectives including ensuring that high quality care is provided consistently. S/he will be a point of contact for physicians and clinical staff assigned to the unit for clinical and process guidance. This will include, but is not limited to, training, documentation, process workflow and other functionality regarding necessary clinical systems. This individual will work with nurse manager, staff and physicians to optimize the usage of clinical systems through education and training, quality and outcomes, and providing support in accordance with organizational goals. Major Duties: -Provide direct care of acute medicine patients and consultative General Medicine care to patients on other services (at least 70% of the time). -Recruit and hire for all hospitalist positions. -Staff and schedule of hospitalist services. -Supervise, manage and execute performance evaluation of hospitalists. Participate in Peer Review, staff counseling, and other quality assurance efforts. -Work with facility leadership on strategic planning and implementation related to acute medicine. -Collaborate with nurse manager and other departments to optimize quality of care, efficiency, and inpatient satisfaction. -Monitor quality of care parameters for inpatient care. Develop and implement inpatient quality improvement projects. -Monitor SAIL measures and implement corrective action, as needed. -Improve efficiency and productivity throughout the unit. -Chair the Patient Flow Committee. -Teach residents and medical students. -Implement, manage and participate in education programs for the inpatient unit personnel. -Update and develop inpatient policies and procedures. Chief Hospitalist may be assigned to perform other duties by Medicine Directorate leadership or Deputy Chief of Staff. The Chief Hospitalist will have 30% of time for administrative duties, however, administrative time may flex depending on staffing and/or on strategic priorities. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm. Due to the nature of this leadership position, it is expected that working hours could be extended beyond the normal tour of duty and it is expected be available 24/7 as well as holidays and weekends if needed. Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment) Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact [email protected], the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more. 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 VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. VHA Physician Total Rewards.
Requirements
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 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.
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: Schools of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for the year in which the degree was granted. Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) for the year in which the degree was granted. 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.
How you will be evaluated
Your application, resume, C.V., and/or other 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. Veterans' Preference Note: Preference eligible candidates and other Veterans will be given preference when qualification of candidates are approximately equal for Title 38 positions in VHA. When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.