Clarification from the agency

Area of Consideration - Eligible applicants will be reviewed and referred in the following order: 1. Current permanent VA employees of the facility. 2. All other VA employees. 3. Current permanent Federal employees of other agencies. 4. All other applicants. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

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

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Authorized.
Education Debt Reduction Program (Student Loan Repayment): Learn more.
EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact Krystee.Draper@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance

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

The Gastroenterologist is to ensure the quality and timeliness of the services provided, customer satisfaction, as well as compliance with the standards of accrediting bodies such as the Joint Commission and the Inspector General's Combined Assessment Program. The Gastroenterologist is to ensure appropriate use of the available resources, will be responsible for the state-of-the-art standards of care in Specialty Service, and will collaborate with other Services as appropriate.

The Gastroenterologist may be asked to complete projects related to his/her area of specialty, expertise, and interests relevant to VA directives and policies. Projects would likely be directly related to his/her training but may occasionally be indirectly related to the practice of gastroenterology, all within the scope of the medical and surgical departments. An example of that would be leading administrative or clinical teams for VA and providing other project leaderships as appropriate. The Gastroenterologist accomplishes the health care delivery mission of the Department of Veterans Affairs in general. Services provided are subject to scrutiny by Congressional interests, service organizations, the public and the media.

FUNCTIONS
The Gastroenterologist is to be a physician, board certified in Gastroenterology, having completed an appropriate residency or fellowship. Certification in Basic Cardiac Life Support and Advanced Cardiac Life Support certification is required.

The Gastroenterologist will be responsible for the following tasks:
Gastroenterology physicians evaluate, diagnose, treat, and provide consultation to adult patients with diseases and disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, including the esophagus, stomach, small and large intestines, pancreas, gallbladder/biliary system, as well as liver. Ordering and providing interpretation of appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic modalities. Evaluating, diagnosing, and developing management plans for new patients. Performing routine internal medicine procedures including paracentesis and anoscopy. Providing relevant patient education regarding diagnosis and medication management. Privileges also include supervision, teaching, and involvement of medical students, trainees, and residents, in the same setting.

Core gastroenterology procedures include, but are not limited to:

• Moderate Sedation (providers must maintain active ACLS certification)
• Flexible sigmoidoscopy
• Colonoscopy with and without biopsy or polypectomy, dilation without fluoroscopy, control of bleeding
• EGD, with and without biopsy or polypectomy, dilation without fluoroscopy, control of bleeding
• Capsule endoscopy

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 dentification 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.

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 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.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

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.

To apply for this position, you must submit a C.V. and/or resume. Other documents may be requested later in the process if needed.

Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field.

Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field.

Next steps