Hospitalist Opportunity at the Birmingham VA

Veteran Affairs Physicians. Because you're in high demand as a VA physician, you start your career in the highest available leave tier, which provides 49 days of paid time off each year. Paid vacation, unlimited accumulated paid sick leave and 11 paid federal holidays accrue right away.

The physician will be responsible for assessment and care of new and returning patients with any number of medical problems (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, ischemic heart disease, COPD, depression, chronic pain). The care may be delivered via face-to-face, telehealth or video visits though this position may require occasional travel to VISN medical centers or Community Based Outreach Clinics (CBOC. He/she is responsible for ordering diagnostics, consultations, medications, and other therapies as medically indicated, meeting preventative health maintenance needs, completing all required VA computer documentation including clinical reminders and screenings in a timely manner. The physician assigned duty station will be one of the sites of care within VA Northern California Health Care System.

Evaluation, including performance of H&P (history and physical); diagnosis; consultation; and treatment of adult patients with medical illnesses performed in the clinic environment, via telehealth or via VA approved video modalities with appropriate support and monitoring. In addition, the provider may perform diagnostic or therapeutic joint aspiration/ injection, soft tissue injection, routine women's health (pelvic exam, breast exam, cytologic pap smear testing, cervical HPV testing), laceration repair, foreign body removal, abscess incision and drainage, diagnostic paracentesis, and wound debridement. He/she may care for patients via face-to face, telemedicine or VA approved video modalities, perform preliminary interpretation of ECG and radiographic studies, and supervise residents, fellows, and others in training.

This is not a remote position!

EDRP Authorized: Up to $40,000 a year, up to 5 years.
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 restrictions on moonlighting

Facility Information:

The Birmingham VA Medical Center (BVAMC) is a 313-bed acute tertiary care facility located in the historic Southside district of the city. The facility provides acute tertiary medical and surgical care to Veterans of Alabama and surrounding states. The medical center serves as a referral center for this population area with 139 operating beds currently. Recent construction provides state-of-the-art facilities and equipment in all clinical programs. Care is provided in practically all medical and surgical specialties and subspecialties. Most staff physicians have joint appointments with VA and its primary affiliation, University of Alabama at Birmingham. The BVAMC operates nine Community Based Outpatient Clinics in North Alabama.

Affiliations

• University of Alabama at Birmingham
• Samford University
• Tuskegee University
• University of Alabama
• University of South Alabama
• Auburn University
• Vanderbilt University
• Florida State University

Authorized Beds

• 313 Authorized

Type of Facility

• Tertiary Care

Special Programs

• Palliative Care
• Open Heart Surgery
• Cardiac Catheterization
• Hemodialysis
• Neurosurgery
• Chemotherapy
• Nuclear Medicine
• Mental Health Clinic
• Home Based Primary Care
• Southeastern Blind Rehabilitation Center
• Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC)
• Research and Development

Paid Time Off:

• 26 Days paid annual (vacation/personal) leave
• 13 Days paid sick leave each year with no limit on accumulation
• 11 Federal holidays with pay annually
• 5 Days paid absence to attend approved CME courses

Insurance:

• Health Insurance: VA employees have an outstanding number of health insurance plans from which to choose (premiums are partially paid by VA) Lifetime Healthcare Insurance options available
• Dental & Vision: Our insurance options also include exceptional vision and dental plans (premiums are partially paid by VA)
• VA employees have the option to use Flexible Spending Accounts, which allow you to use tax-free dollars to pay for medical, dental, and vision care expenses that are not reimbursed by your health insurance plan
• Term life insurance, family, and additional coverage options are available with the cost shared by the Federal Government
• Long-term care insurance is available as an option

Federal Retirement Plan:

• VA employees are covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). FERS is a three-tiered retirement plan composed of 1) Social Security benefits, 2) FERS-RAE basic benefits (pension), and 3) Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) which is a 401K-type plan
• How is the pension funded? VA employees automatically contribute 4.4% of their salary each pay period and the VA contributes 12.2% of the employee’s salary each pay period for a total annual contribution percentage equal to 16.6% of the employee’s salary
• Similar to the 401(k) savings plans widely available in the private sector, the TSP allows employees to tax defer a portion of their income each year, subject to the requirements of the Internal Revenue Service. For calendar year 2020, employees under the age of 50 may contribute up to $19,500, while those over age 50 are eligible to make catch-up contributions that allow them to defer up to $25,500.
• The Federal Government also provides an automatic basic contribution (1% of salary) and up to 4% of salary in matching contributions, depending on the amount of the employee contribution
• For retired military personnel, these benefits are in addition to full monthly retirement pay or pension
• In addition to FERS, VA provides health care insurance coverage for retired personnel
• Disability Retirement
• Employees are vested in a federal pension after only 5 years service