Urgent Care Opportunity Caring for Veterans in Honolulu

The VA Pacific Islands Health Care System provides access to patient care to over 130,000 veterans across a 2.6M square mile area of the Pacific Ocean. Remote Island locations, separated by great distances of ocean, is the environment in which the VAPIHCS delivers a full range of comprehensive health care services. The VAPIHCS operates seven community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs) covering seven county areas. These outpatient clinics are in America Samoa, Guam, Hilo, Kauai, Kona, Leeward, and Maui. VAPIHCS is a Level 2 facility within the VA Sierra Pacific Network (VISN 21).

The Urgent Care Physician (UCP) will be responsible for the overall medical care of VA patients that present to the VA Urgent Care Center at VAPIHCS. The UCP is to ensure the quality and timeliness of the services provided and 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 UCP will ensure appropriate use of available resources and will be responsible for practicing current standards of care. The major duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

1. 1. Evaluate and treat acute conditions and stabilize patients with emergent conditions. These include, but are not limited to, myocardial infarction, chest pain, Congestive Heart Failure (CHF), abdominal pain, altered mental status, acute vascular events, seizures, stroke, dyspnea, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), pulmonary embolism, pneumonia, COVID, acute pain syndromes, fever syndromes, Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), musculoskeletal pain, fractures, minor trauma, and lacerations, etc.
   2. The UCP is responsible for assessment, physical exam, evaluation and management of patients presenting to the clinic. This includes competency in interpreting diagnostic tests, including but not exclusive to, lab results, electrocardiogram (EKG), and imaging studies such as x-rays. They should be familiar with computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and ultrasound regarding utilization, review, and management of the interpretation by a radiologist.
   3. UCP must have competency in clinical judgment skills regarding the appropriateness of transferring patients to a community hospital for a higher level of care.
   4. Act as the consultant for other physicians and mid-level providers at VAPIHCS for urgent/emergent questions/cases/acute conditions that may arise either in Primary Care or other Medical Services.
   5. The UCP will collaborate with other Medical Services as appropriate.
   6. The UCP maintains timely encounters, medical records, and reports.
   7. The UCP is to be on site in clinic while on duty. Telework is not authorized.

Work Schedule: Full-Time, Monday to Friday 7:30am - 4:00pm 

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