Lead and Serve: Chief Gastroenterology Opportunity- Beautiful Central Texas! Work-Life Balance! Incentive Offered!

As the Chief of Gastroenterology you are expected to remain privileged and practicing in the field of inpatient, outpatient, and procedural Gastroenterology. The exact privileges and procedures for a particular provider will be approved by MSEC based on training, experience, and currency. Duties may include supervising and instructing Internal Medicine residents and Gastroenterology Fellows in outpatient and inpatient settings and providing appropriate feedback on their performance in a timely fashion. In addition to clinical responsibilities, you are expected to provide leadership oversight to the Gastroenterology Section, working with the Associate Chief of Staff, Medical Service, to ensure timely and effective patient care for eligible veterans. Those leadership duties involve working with administrative staff to review and approve staffing plans, review quality of care metrics and reports, and address patient advocacy issues in a timely and effective fashion.

We offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your professional and personal well-being:

• Competitive Compensation: Enjoy a competitive salary, annual performance bonuses, and regular salary increases. Salary range- $370,000-$400,000
• Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm, with rotating weekend on-call responsibilities.
• Generous Time Off: Benefit from 50-55 days of paid time off annually, including 26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid federal holidays, and the possibility of 5 days of paid absence for CME.
• Retirement Security: Participate in a traditional federal pension (with 5-year vesting) and a federal 401K with up to 5% matching contributions.
• Comprehensive Insurance: Access federal health, vision, dental, term life, and long-term care insurance, with many programs portable into retirement.
• Malpractice Coverage: Rest assured with free liability protection, including tail coverage.
• Flexibility and Autonomy: No physician employment contract and minimal restrictions on moonlighting.
• Education Support: Potential for $1,000 per year reimbursement for CME (for full-time, board-certified physicians).
• Recruitment Incentives: You may be eligible for a sign-on bonus and participation in the Education Debt Reduction Program (student loan repayment).

Preferred Qualifications:
• Ability to work within an organization to provide strategic direction.
• Ability to provide compassionate, appropriate, and effective patient care.
• Four years post fellowship experience practicing clinical gastroenterology.
• Procedural experience of greater than 500 EGD's and colonoscopies.
• Knowledge of established and evolving biomedical, clinical, and social sciences.

Temple, Texas: A Vibrant Community to Call Home:
Located just 45 minutes north of Austin, Temple offers the best of both worlds: the charm of small-town living with easy access to the amenities of a major metropolitan area. Temple boasts scenic parks and trails, a family-friendly atmosphere, and unique neighborhoods filled with Texas charm. It's a place where you can thrive both professionally and personally.

If you are a dedicated Gastroenterologist seeking a rewarding leadership role, we encourage you to apply. This is an opportunity to make a significant impact on the lives of veterans while advancing your career in a supportive and dynamic environment.

For more information, please contact Corina Sanchez, Physician & Provider Recruiter, at Corina.Sanchez@va.gov.
Don't miss this chance to lead and serve in Temple, Texas!

The Central Texas Veterans Health Care System (CTVHCS), accredited by the Joint Commission, is comprised of two large Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers located in Temple and Waco, a large stand-alone outpatient clinic in Austin, four community based outpatient clinics located in Brownwood, Bryan/College Station, Cedar Park, and Palestine plus a rural outreach clinic in La Grange.

The system is one of the largest integrated health care systems in the United States and provides a full range of services including medical, surgical, psychiatric, and rehabilitation with inpatient medical/surgical hospital beds, a hospice unit, and community living center (CLC) beds.  Located on its Waco campus, CTVHCS has one of the largest inpatient psychiatric facilities and one of only 12 Blind Rehabilitation Centers in the country. CTVHCS serves a Veteran population of more than 252,000, covers 35,243 square miles and 11 congressional districts in 39 counties.

In fiscal year (FY) 2013, CTVHCS treated 98,242 Veteran unique patients and recorded 8,925 inpatient admissions. Outpatient workload totaled 1,120,995 visits. CTVHCS collaborates with Fort Hood, the largest military base in the world with the biggest troop commitment to Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn (OEF/OIF/OND). CTVHCS provides transitional medical services and conducts PTSD and traumatic brain injury (TBI) research -- the signature illnesses of these conflicts.

CTVHCS has affiliation agreements with Texas A&M College of Medicine/Baylor-Scott and White Healthcare System, the University of Texas Southwestern/Seton Healthcare Network, and the Texas Department of State Health Services. More than 250 Residents and Fellows are trained annually at CTHVCS, plus more than 150 medical students per year. For the 2013 school year, CTVHCS received authorization for 100 graduate medical education slots for residents and fellows. CTVHCS has 113 separate affiliation agreements across the country with over 217 training programs—with the majority in Associated Health Programs; i.e., nursing, physician assistants, psychology, radiology techs, social workers, and more—resulting in just over 1,500 trainees per year completing the programs. We have added totally new training programs in Infectious Disease, Endocrinology, Preventive Medicine, ENT, Cardiology, Dermatology, Plastic Surgery, Vascular Surgery, Orthopedics, Pathology, Radiology, and Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation. As well as added additional positions in Pulmonary, Gastroenterology, General Surgery, Internal Medicine, Psychiatry, Anesthesiology, Family Medicine, and Neurology. Of the 343 CTVHCS medical staff, 168 have faculty appointments with Texas A&M College of Medicine.

The main CTVHCS Campus is at the Olin E. Teague Veterans' Medical Center in Temple, Texas. On the Temple Campus is a full-service, 189-bed teaching hospital that serves as the medical/surgical referral center for all CTVHCS campuses as well as providing outpatient services to Veterans across the 32-county service catchment area. Also located at the Temple Campus is a 262-bed domiciliary, a new 80-bed Community Living Center (CLC) which includes a 20-bed hospice unit, and an 8-bed Trauma Recovery Unit. A 160-bed State Veterans Home also resides on the Temple Campus grounds as well as an $11.5 million VA Research Institute which attracts world-class researchers to the Central Texas area. A new cardiac cauterization suite was completed in the summer of 2013 and is now operational.

Research Service at CTVHCS supports the national goal of advancing medical research programs that address Veterans' needs. CTVHCS participates in research supported by the VA Office of Research and Development, as well as from external sources such as Department of Defense, National Institutes of Health, non-profit foundations, and pharmaceutical companies. Forty-three principal investigators work on more than 131 active human, animal, or safety studies at CTVHCS. CTVHCS received a full 5-year accreditation by The Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP) effective September 9, 2011. In FY07, the total research expenditures for R&D Committee approved projects were $2.05 million. In FY13, the total increased to $8.06 million, which is a four-fold increase over the last seven fiscal years.

CTVHCS has affiliation agreements with Texas A&M College of Medicine/Scott and White, The University of Texas Southwestern Austin/Seton Healthcare Network, and the Texas Department of Health. More than 200 Residents and Fellows are trained annually at CTHVCS, plus more than 150 medical students per year. Over recent years, CTVHCS received authorization for additional graduate medical education residents, creating a total of 75 slots for residents and fellows in 2012. CTVHCS has 102 separate affiliation agreements across the country with over 200 training programs—with the majority in Associated Health Programs; i.e., nursing, physician assistants, psychology, radiology techs, social workers, and more—resulting in just over 1,500 trainees per year completing the programs. Of the 343 CTVHCS medical staff, 168 have faculty appointments with Texas A&M College of Medicine. Clinics

In addition to our main facilities in Temple and Waco, we have an outpatient clinic in Austin and the Temple Annex PACT Clinic. We offer services at the LaGrange VA Outreach Clinic and in four community-based outpatient clinics. These clinics are located in: Brownwood Bryan-College Station Cedar Park Palestine

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