Physician (Cardiology)

Veterans Health Administration•Memphis, TN

3d•Onsite

About The Position

The Lt. Col. Luke Weathers, Jr., VAMC in Memphis, TN is recruiting for a Cardiology position to serve as a full-time Specialty Care physician. The position is accountable to the Chief of Specialty Care for assuring the most effective delivery of state-of-the-art care by meeting or exceeding compliance standards. The position will include an affiliate faculty appointment at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, commensurate with qualifications.

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 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.
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.
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.

Nice To Haves

Board Eligibility/Certification in Internal Medicine
Board Eligibility/Certification in Cardiovascular Diseases
Board Eligibility/Certification in Echocardiography
Board Eligibility/Certification in Nuclear Cardiology

Responsibilities

Clinical practice, supervising and teaching Cardiology fellows, residents and medical students.
Responsible for providing consultation on various forms of cardiovascular disease states, both for diagnosis and treatment in the inpatient and outpatient settings.
Expected to share attending call responsibilities with the other cardiologists in covering some night, weekend and holiday calls as needed.
Round with the team of residents and fellows on such occasions and perform emergency procedures on patients in the Intensive Care Unit or when required the Emergency Department or Operating Room.
Required to give didactic lectures to Cardiology fellows and also participate in academic activities such as journal review, Grand rounds, conferences and lectures.
Responsible for recognizing patients appropriate for referral or consultation with the collaborating physician.
Provide comprehensive patient care in the form of noninvasive, consultative, and inpatient/outpatient cardiology care.
Moderate Sedation Privileges and certification required.
Central venous line insertion and management.
Intra-arterial lines insertion and management.
Interpret EKGs.
Interpret holter monitors.
Cardioversion, Stress test interpretation, tilt testing, non-invasive ICD stimulation, pacer and ICD evaluation and programming as needed.
Clinical activities may include, but are not limited to, clinical assessment and evaluation - Inpatients and Outpatients.
Health care management of assigned veteran patients with acute and chronic illnesses.
Ordering and interpreting laboratory and diagnostic studies.
Consultation and referrals; Inpatients and Outpatients.
Patient follow-up, as appropriate.
Health promotion and disease prevention.
Patient, family, and staff education and counseling.
Clinical research.
Outpatient Clinics for general and interventional Cardiology Patients.
Inpatient Services including CCU and consultative services, rounding with a team of Cardiology fellows, Internal Medicine Residents, Medical students, Pharmacists etc.
The major responsibility is that of a Non-invasive/preventive Cardiologist (62.5%) with some Cardiology research responsibilities (37.5%).
The incumbent in conjunction with other Cardiologists will help build a robust Cardiology practice with focus on Heart failure, Cardio-oncology and Preventive Cardiology.
Any other duties as assigned.

Benefits

Competitive salary
Annual performance bonus
Regular salary increases
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)
Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting)
Federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Free liability protection with tail coverage provided
No Physician Employment Contract
No significant restriction on moonlighting
May be eligible for highly qualified applicants for Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus)
This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program.
Possible $1,000 per year reimbursement (must be full-time with board certification) for CME