Physician Assistant - Geriatric / Long Term Care

Summary

Physician Assistant will be a Mid-Level provider for the Community Living Centers (CLC) under the Geriatrics/Long-Term Care (G/LTC) Service Line. The incumbent will provide clinical support to the supervisory physicians of the CLC; duties and responsibilities will be at the direction of the physician Lead. The Physician Assistant will function in both a clinical and administrative role, in accordance with the guidelines and policies of the Martinsburg Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

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Duties

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Clinical:

• Primary focus of practice is to provide emergent, urgent and non-urgent geriatric primary care supporting the CLC.
• Experience in Hospice & Palliative Care with certification being preferred.
• Experience in providing leadership to interdisciplinary teams and facilitating family discussions.
• Adhering to established Medical Center policies and procedures and VA Directives.
• Demonstrating leadership and accomplishment when providing support to the supervising physician and the Chief of G/LTC and assistance to representatives to various department/services within the VA organization.
• Implementing and complying with administrative review of the service's operations to assure compliance with all internal and external review requirements.
• Clinical management of patients may include skills necessary for the stabilization of acute complications and may include the initiation of basic life support.
• Patient education is primarily provided in an interactive setting which requires good interpersonal skills.
• Under the direction of the attending physician and Chief of G/LTC shall be accountable for all clinical duties and assignments that he/she deems necessary.
• Demonstration of leadership as a member of the interdisciplinary team.
• Order and evaluate appropriate laboratories and other tests.
• Perform history and physical examinations on CLC patients.
• Make appropriate diagnosis/diagnoses.
• Administer medications and injections when appropriate.
• Provide ongoing follow up patient care.
• Review and order appropriate medications and treatments.
• Make entries in progress notes as specified in the Medical Center Policy (MCP)
• Maintain Basic Life Support (BLS) certification
• Maintain a current working knowledge of VHA regulations and guidelines, Joint Commission (JC) standards and other standards pertinent to services provided.
• Consistently demonstrates expertise in diagnosing and treating seriously ill, multisymptomatic patients.

Administrative:

• Coordinates referrals and evaluation of veterans at the Martinsburg Veterans Affairs Medical Center in addition to outside VA's and private sector referrals of Veterans for evaluation and management.
• Facilitates response/actions to patient inquiries for care and treatment provided by the Section.
• Other administrative duties as needed.

Educational:

• Attends educational activities to maintain certification needs.
• Participates in educational activities in the G/LTC Service and the Medical Center to ensure updated knowledge of the subject matter.
• Makes use of other educational materials on an as-needed basis.

Research:

• Appreciates the need for research activities as complementary and useful aspects of patient care.
• Becomes familiar with requirements for submission of research protocols and assists Program Support Assistant and others in the preparation of documents.
• Participates in the care of patients enrolled in research and documents those activities as required on a timely basis.

VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package.

Work Schedule: Intermittent

Telework: Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Contract Buy Out Program: This position may be eligible for the Physician / Provider Contract Buy Out Program (CBOP), which authorizes VHA to buy out service contracts (Locum agreements, loan repayments, sign-on bonus contracts, Physician-owned practices) in exchange for employment at certain rural or highly rural facilities for a period of obligated service (minimum 4 years). For additional information and eligibility requirements, contact the VHA Contract Buy Out Program Manager at vacontractbuyoutprog@va.gov.

Requirements

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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.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation/examination.
• 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.

Physician Assistant Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Education. Graduate of a training program which is accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education of PA (ARC-PA) or one of its predecessor organizations. Additionally, candidates must meet one of the following:
  • Master's degree in any discipline; OR
  • Bachelor's degree in any discipline with one year of experience as a PA.
• Certification. Must have successfully passed the PA National Certifying Exam (PANCE).
  • Note: Current and continuous certification by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) is no longer required for employment in VHA. (See paragraph 3a in this standard for additional information regarding the certification requirement for employees grandfathered into the occupation.)
• Licensure. PAs must possess an active, current, full, and unrestricted license to practice in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia. PAs must maintain current registration in the State of licensure if this is a requirement for continuing active and current licensure in that State.
• English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C., §7403(f).

Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements stated above, the following qualification criteria must be met in determining the appropriate grade assignment of candidates:

(1) Physician Assistant-I (PA-I)

(a) Experience and Education. None beyond the basic requirements. This is the entry level for PAs.

(b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. The following list of knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA) presents the minimum skill set expected of an Entry Level PA. This practice may include, but is not limited to:

• Ability to utilize the principles of PA practice in the care of assigned patients to provide appropriate care.
• Ability to perform patient history and physical.
• Ability to formulate a plan and provide treatment to the patient.
• Ability to provide patient care that is abreast of changing concepts and advancements in the profession.

(2) Physician Assistant-II (PA-II)

(a) Experience and Education. The PA at this grade is at the intermediate grade level and has had progressively increasing responsibility and experience as indicated in the KSAs listed below. Individuals will have demonstrated the ability to analyze and solve more complex medical problems than at the entry-level grade and can utilize their training in the successful practice of patient care and participate in team problem solving. Individuals demonstrate the KSAs of PA-II intermediate level by:

• i. Two years of successful practice as a PA. ~OR~
• ii. Successful completion of a PA post-graduate residency program sponsored by VHA Office of Academic Affiliations or other postgraduate residency programs accredited by VA, ARC-PA, U.S. Armed Forces, or another accrediting agency. ~OR~
• iii. A doctoral degree in a health-related field from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

(b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). PAs at this level are not required to meet each individual KSA listed below to qualify, but should be able to demonstrate, develop, or acquire those not met upon appointment for PA-II:

• Skills to analyze and solve complex medical problems.
• Ability to function autonomously and make independent medical decisions.
• Skill to incorporate training and experience into the successful practice of patient care, including telehealth medical care.
• Ability to work effectively in an interdisciplinary environment for improvement of services for patient care.
• Ability to practice with colleagues and peers collaboratively.

(3) Physician Assistant-III (PA-III)

(a) Experience and Education. PAs at the PA-III grade are at the full performance level and lead and organize patient care independently, practice within multi-disciplinary teams, and coordinate all aspects of patient care across the health care system. They utilize advanced clinical knowledge and judgment in decision-making and evaluating outcomes. They function as experts in clinical practice and/or in areas related to the assigned roles and responsibilities, may serve as mentors for transitioning PAs, and may provide training for health care students. Individuals can demonstrate the KSAs for the full performance level by:

• i. Three years of successful practice as a PA. ~OR~
• ii. Successful completion of a PA post-graduate residency program sponsored by VHA Office of Academic Affiliations or other postgraduate residency programs accredited by VA, ARC-PA, U.S. Armed Forces, or another accrediting agency and one year of professional practice as a PA. ~OR~
• iii. A doctoral degree in a health-related field from an accredited college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and one year of professional practice as a PA.

(b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. PAs at this level are not required to meet each individual KSA listed below to qualify, but should be able to demonstrate, develop, or acquire those not met upon appointment for PA-III:

• i. Ability to clinically evaluate facility patient care delivery systems and validate or identify barriers to safe and effective patient care.
• ii. Skill to consistently demonstrate an elevated level of expertise and autonomy in diagnosing and treating seriously ill, multi-symptomatic patients through facility Focused Professional Practice Evaluation (FPPE) and Ongoing Professional Practice Evaluation (OPPE).
• iii. Ability to present clinical findings and recommendations to appropriate management officials.
• iv. Ability to clinically facilitate the delivery of patient care in collaboration with health professionals, health managers, and other health care personnel.
• v. Ability to implement and initiate clinical changes to established treatment protocols based upon new medical literature research findings to enhance patient delivery care for improved patient outcomes.
• vi. Ability to participate clinically in the development of the PA patient care audit processes involving in-depth review and analysis of medical records.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service.

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.

"Whole Health is an approach to health care that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their life to the fullest. The VA is committed to Whole Health and values Veteran and Employee health and well-being. As a VA employee, you will practice Whole Health in an environment that supports personalized and proactive care."

The VA has adopted Core Values and Characteristics that apply universally across the Department. The five Core Values define "who we are," our culture, and how we care for Veterans, their families, and other beneficiaries.

The Values are Integrity, Commitment, Advocacy, Respect, and Excellence ("I CARE").

As a VA professional, your opportunities are endless. With many openings in the multiple functions of VA, you will have a wide range of opportunities and leadership positions at your fingertips.

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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.