Summary The physician will serve as administrative and clinical Section Chief for Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT. He/she will provide interpretive and patient care services within the scope of Nuclear Medicine and Diagnostic Radiology. He/she will have responsibilities in other areas such as education and committee service. Responsibilities The physician will serve as administrative and clinical Section Chief for Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT. He/she will provide interpretive and patient care services within the scope of Nuclear Medicine and Diagnostic Radiology. He/she will have responsibilities in other areas such as education and committee service.In addition to clinical and educational responsibilities, the Nuclear Medicine Section Chief will be responsible administering all aspects of the Nuclear Medicine and PET/CT throughout the South Texas VA Health Care System. He/she must demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to supervise and provide all nuclear medicine and PET/CT diagnostic services including: Planning for the provision of care, including adequate personnel, diagnostic equipment, and supplies to ensure availability of those procedures which are appropriate to the needs of the facility; Providing timely patient care with acceptable turnaround times; Ensuring equitable nuclear medicine physician duty assignments which are appropriate to training and experience; Providing professional oversight to the nuclear medicine technologists; Development and monitoring of activities which improve patient safety, performance, and quality; Maintaining a safe radiation environment; Ensuring patient privacy and confidentiality of patient medical information; Ensuring accurate CPT coding; Ensuring compliance with all internal and external quality and radiation safety requirements, to include those of federal statues, VA policies/directives, The Joint Commission, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), National Health Physics Program (NHPP) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC); Representing the Nuclear Medicine Section, Imaging Service, and/or STVHCS facility during accreditation, inspection, or investigational surveys in regard to Nuclear Medicine; Recommending privileging requirements for Nuclear Medicine, reviewing requests for clinical privileges and making recommendations regarding appointment and privileging action; Providing technical expertise input for Nuclear Medicine equipment and contracts; Maintaining sufficient computer skills necessary to work with advanced PACS, 3-D Imaging Workstations and Voice Recognition systems; Supervising training programs in Nuclear Medicine to include medical students, residents and technologist students; Participating in business planning, supply/equipment acquisition, manpower and budget management for Nuclear Medicine VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): May be authorized for Highly Qualified Individuals 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. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm This is an open continuous announcement and will remain open until the closing date or until the position is filled. Eligible applications received will be referred at regular intervals or as additional vacancies occur on an as-needed basis until the position is filled. Requirements Conditions of Employment All qualified candidates encouraged to apply. Open to U.S. Citizens but non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens. 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. 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 Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Podiatrist Basic Requirements Degree as a doctor of podiatric medicine, or its equivalent, from a school of podiatric medicine approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Approved schools are United States schools of podiatric medicine approved by the Council on Podiatry Education of the American Podiatry Association in the year in which the degree was granted. ~AND~ Completed, or currently completing, residency training, or its equivalent, approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in an accredited core specialty training program leading to eligibility for board certification. VA Podiatrists 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 Council on Podiatric Medical Education, in the list published for the year the residency was completed, or (2) Other residencies and training experiences, or their equivalents, which the local Professional Standards Board determines to have provided an applicant with appropriate professional training. ~AND~ Currently hold, or will hold, a full and unrestricted license to practice Podiatry in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States or in the District of Columbia. Preferred Experience: 3 years of experience as staff radiologist or higher Currently proficient in nuclear medicine Proficient in multi-modality and multi-organ system radiology, more preferred Proficient in general radiologist capabilities Experience in supervising Nuclear Medicine Section, physicians, technologists Experience in successfully completing accreditation or inspection surveys Experience in conflict resolution Board Certified in Nuclear Medicine Grade Determinations: Service Chief, Section Chief or Line Manager: A service chief or line manager podiatrist must demonstrate the following:1. Outstanding professional ability in the practice of medicine or a medical specialty; and2. Ability to guide the development and implementation of programs, within their respective domain. These programs would include, but are not limited to, medical practice, professional standards, personnel issues, and quality and performance improvement. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Pre-Employment/Post-Employment Physical Examination: May be required, depending on the needs of the organization. Education Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
