Physician Assistant

Summary

The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

The PA is directly responsible to the HBPC Program Director. The scope of practice for the PA includes responsibilities, diagnosis and treatment authorities prescribing privileges for drugs, devices, tests and procedures, and referral authority. The PA functions as an advocate for patients in meeting their unique physical and psychological needs.

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Duties

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This is OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until September 30,2026. The initial cut-off date for referrals of eligible application will be April 20,2026 with subsequent cut-off dates every month. Eligible applications received after that date will be accepted on an ongoing basis and qualified candidates will be considered as vacancies become available.

• Assuming primary medical responsibility for assigned patients.
• Delivering care in the home
• Assessing care needs of patients and caregivers.
• Identifying a patient's medical problems and defining the medical management.
• Prescribing medications and treatment in accordance with their individual scope of practice or delineation of privilege
• Determining the need for consultation from subspecialties.
• Determining the need for, and facilitating admission to, the VA medical facility and other transitions of care.
• Participating in the development of the individual plan of care at interdisciplinary care meetings for assigned panel of patients.
• Writing orders and prescriptions, as necessary for the care of the patient in accordance with Federal and State law, and within VA policy, using the Louis A. Johnson VAMC approved formulary, excluding controlled substances in Schedules I-II.
• Participating in the development and implementation of HBPC's process for continuous performance improvement.
• Participates in collecting and collating data required for team reports.
• Coordinates referrals and evaluation of veterans at the DC Veteran Affairs Medical Center in addition to outside VA's and private sector referrals of Veterans for evaluation and management.
• Facilitates response/actions to patient inquires for care and treatment provided by the Section.
• Other administrative duties as needed.

A PA is authorized to perform the following duties for patients in life-threatening situations where a physician is not immediately available. PA will initiate these activities but will make every effort to summon a physician as soon as possible.

• Cardiopulmonary resuscitation in accordance with current CPR standards
• Treatment of acute respiratory failure
• Treatment of life-threatening traumatic injuries.
• If ACLS certified, may initiate Advance Cardiac Life Support in accordance with current ACLS protocols, to include defibrillation/cardioversion.

Work Schedule: Monday to Friday, 7:30am -4:00pm, 8:00am - 4:30pm and or 7:00 - 5:30pm, however tour of duty may change based on the needs of the facility.

VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. VHA Physician Total Rewards.

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

Promotion Potential : The selectee may be promoted to the next level or grade level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the higher level.

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 View email address on click.appcast.io.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship; non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• 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.
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• 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 ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, you must meet the basic requirements as well as any additional requirements (if applicable) listed in the job announcement. Applicants pending the completion of training or license requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Currently employed physician(s) in VA who met the requirements for appointment under the previous qualification standard at the time of their initial appointment are deemed to have met the basic requirements of the occupation.

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.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.

Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements stated above, the following qualification criteria must be met:

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. AA 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 .

Preferred Requirement:

• Experience working in Primary Care.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit full performance level of this vacancy is VN-03. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of VN-01 to VN-03.

Physical Requirements:

• Lifting up to 35 pounds, intermittently; moderate carrying (15-35 pounds), intermittently; lifting over 35 pounds with assistive devices in accordance with the Safe Patient Handling Policy except in emergent situations requiring prompt patient care; pulling, intermittently; pushing, intermittently; reaching above the shoulders, intermittently, both hands required; walking, intermittently; standing, intermittently; kneeling, intermittently; and repeated bending.

Education

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:

(1)Master's degree in any discipline;

OR

(2)Bachelor's degree in any discipline with one year of experience as a PA.]

c. 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.)

NOTE: The Under Secretary of Health or designee in the VHA Central Office may approve the appointment under authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 of a physician graduate of a school of medicine not covered above if the candidate is to be assigned to a research, academic, or administrative position with no patient care responsibilities. The appointment will be made only in exceptional circumstances where the candidate's credentials clearly demonstrate high professional attainment or expertise in the specialty area.

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: 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:

Additional information

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 wellbeing. As a VA employee, you will practice Whole Health in an environment that supports personalized and proactive care.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

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.

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.

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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.