Physician (Neurologist)

Veterans Health Administration•Wilkes Barre, PA

6d•Onsite

About The Position

The Physician (Neurologist) works in the Medical Service at the VA Wilkes-Barre Health Care System, providing comprehensive, efficient, compassionate, high-quality healthcare in inpatient and outpatient settings as part of an interdisciplinary team. The physician evaluates patients and directs their overall management in collaboration with other healthcare professionals. The role includes outpatient neurologic consultations and follow-up care, electromyography and nerve conduction testing, and may include supervision and education of Internal Medicine residents and medical students. Botulinum toxin injections are preferred. Neurology subspecialty consultations may involve epilepsy, movement disorders, neuromuscular medicine, multiple sclerosis, and dementia. The facility also has EEG testing and an inpatient neurology service. The position includes clinical program participation, compliance with assigned privileges and facility policies, medical staff education and meetings, and quality assurance and record-review responsibilities. Other duties may be assigned by the Chief of Medicine. The position is based at the VA Wilkes-Barre Health Care System. The schedule is Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with a rotating shared home-call schedule. The position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), which may repay up to $200,000 in qualifying loans, subject to eligibility and program approval. Applicants must submit an EDRP application within four months of appointment; former EDRP participants are ineligible. Relocation assistance is authorized to reimburse moving costs. Salary may exceed the stated maximum for candidates meeting annual performance metrics. A recruitment incentive is not authorized. This is an open-continuous announcement, with applications reviewed upon submission.

Requirements

Doctor of Medicine (MD) or equivalent degree in allopathic or osteopathic medicine from an approved school.
Current, full, and unrestricted license to practice medicine or surgery in a U.S. state, territory, commonwealth, or the District of Columbia.
Completion of qualifying residency training in an accredited core specialty program leading to eligibility for board certification, or qualifying alternative training and independent-practice experience described in the announcement.
Proficiency in written and spoken English.
U.S. citizenship, except that non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens under VA policy.
Meet medical staff criteria for initial appointment and reappointment, including ongoing continuing medical education.
Selected applicants must pass a pre-employment physical evaluation and complete applicable background, security, and onboarding requirements.
Applicants in testing-designated positions must submit to pre-appointment urinalysis; refusal results in denial of employment.
Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must meet Selective Service registration requirements.
Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is required for VA healthcare personnel.
A probationary period may be required.
Complete the application requirements detailed in the announcement's Required Documents section.

Nice To Haves

Experience or ability to provide botulinum toxin injections.
Board certification may support eligibility for the possible $1,000 annual CME reimbursement; the reimbursement also requires full-time status.

Responsibilities

Provide medical evaluation and direct the overall management of patients in collaboration with other healthcare team members.
Provide clinical care in inpatient and outpatient settings as part of an interdisciplinary team.
Conduct outpatient neurologic consultations and follow-up care.
Perform electromyography (EMG) and nerve conduction studies.
Participate in an effective clinical program with attention to patient outcome indicators.
Practice within the scope of assigned privileges and comply with facility and agency bylaws, rules, and regulations.
Maintain prescribed medical record keeping and comply with information security policies and procedures.
Work effectively with patients, families, staff, coworkers, and other healthcare professionals.
Participate in Medical Service educational activities and scheduled meetings.
Participate in subspecialty-related research activities as assigned.
Complete assigned peer reviews, health record reviews, MAOs, and other reviews within required timeframes, and maintain quality assurance standards.
Perform evoked potential multi-modality studies, electroencephalography (EEG), and multiple sleep latency tests; score and interpret polysomnograms.
Supervise and educate Internal Medicine residents and medical students as required.
Perform botulinum toxin injections, preferred.
Perform other related duties as assigned by the Chief of Medicine.

Benefits

Education Debt Reduction Program repayment of up to $200,000 in qualifying student loans, subject to eligibility and approval.
Reimbursement of moving costs to the Wilkes-Barre area.
Competitive salary, annual performance bonus, and regular salary increases.
50–55 days of paid time off per year, including 26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid federal holidays, and a possible five-day paid CME absence.
Traditional federal pension with five-year vesting.
Federal 401(k) with up to 5% in contributions by VA.
Federal health, vision, dental, term life, and long-term care insurance; many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement.
Possible $1,000 per year CME reimbursement for full-time employees with board certification.
Free liability protection with tail coverage.
No physician employment contract and no significant restriction on moonlighting.