Dentist

Summary

The Lt. Col. Luke Weathers, Jr., VAMC in Memphis, TN is recruiting for a General Practice Dentist. The position is accountable to the Chief of Dentistry, for assuring the most effective delivery of state-of-the-art care by meeting or exceeding compliance standards. The General Dentist provides a wide range of clinical dental procedures for both inpatient and outpatient eligible Veterans, as assigned by the Chief of Dental Service or designee.

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Duties

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Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Demonstrate proficient diagnosis and treatment skills, including emergency care and procedures in preventive, restorative, surgical, implant, endodontic, periodontic, and prosthodontic dentistry.
• Provide dental care that will restore, prevent, or remedy dental disease and injuries of the teeth, jaws, and related structures of veterans according to generally accepted standards of dental practice and scope of services based upon statutory eligibility.
• Provide a broad range of routine and complex procedures including restorative, implant, endodontic, prosthetic, periodontic, and oral surgery.
• Facilitate and manage community care referrals.
• Educate Veterans on proper oral hygiene techniques and the importance of regular dental visits, encouraging effective oral health practices to prevent diseases and decay.
• Communicate effectively with Veterans regarding their treatment options, procedures, and outcomes
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date patient records, including treatment plans and progress notes.
• Complete monthly Clinical Point of Care Reviews and semiannual Ongoing Professional Practice Evaluations.
• Maintain regular attendance at service level meetings, such as staff meetings, case presentation and implant board, and Facility Medical Staff Meetings.
• Participate in interdisciplinary care discussions and contribute to the development of comprehensive care plans.
• When assigned by the Chief of Dental Service, attend and present as needed to Facility meetings and workgroups (CPRC, IPRC, RSM, PMC, etc.).
• The provider will perform only those privileges for which approval has been granted by the Medical Center Director prospectively and in writing. Privileges will be renewed semiannually or when additional/new training qualifies the dentist to perform other procedures not already approved.
• Provide direct patient care in a hospital or outpatient setting to adults with or without acute and chronic medical conditions and serves as a consultant to other healthcare providers.
• Experienced in interpretation of dental radiographs and in delivery of diagnostic consultations and clinical dental treatment as outlined in their individual approved privileges.
• Provide up to 49% administrative duties when requested.
• Maintains own professional qualifications, participates in customer service training, computer training, attends mandated medical center training activities as required and provides resident supervision as directed.
• Individuals with specialized training in a particular specialty may be assigned section chief responsibilities for that subspecialty and may
  function as the primary clinician or subject matter expert responsible for formulating policy, procedures, education and training affecting the daily clinical operations of the subspecialty.
• May provide education and training to members of the medical staff through various conferences, committees and lecture series.
• As a Staff Dentist, Dental personnel must be able to upon request from the service chief to act as the service chief regarding integrated community Veteran care record review and documentation submission review and processing of IVC information to and from the computerized record system or Veteran record.
• Understand the CDT coding, CPT, and ICD10 coding requirements.
• Additional duties encompass administrative responsibilities, educational contributions, and pursuing departmental goals and metrics, as well as other duties as assigned by the Chief of Dental Service or designee.

VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package.

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

Telework : Not Available

Virtual : This is not a virtual position.

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives : Not Authorized

EDRP Authorized: This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply. Learn more.

Permanent Change of Station (PCS) : Not Authorized

PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO) : Not Authorized

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 ( 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 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.

Dentist Basic Requirements

• A degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery or dental medicine resulting from a course of education in dentistry. The degree must have been obtained from one of the schools approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved schools are (1) United States and Canadian schools of dentistry listed by the Commission on Dental Accreditation(CODA), in the list published for the year in which the course of study was completed.(2) Schools (including foreign schools) accepted by the licensing body of a State, Territory, or Commonwealth (i.e., Puerto Rico), or the District of Columbia as qualifying for full and unrestricted licensure provided the licensure requirements include a written examination measuring science achievement and a performance examination measuring clinical competence certification, and must obtain a copy of the ECFMG certificate, if claimed by the applicant. ~AND~
• Completed, or you are currently completing, a residency program in general practice or specialty, or comparable experience as a dentist actively involved in treating medically compromised patients. ~AND~
• Currently hold, or will hold, a current, full and unrestricted license to practice dentistry in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia. Note: Dentists must maintain current registration in the State of licensure if this is a requirement for continuing active, current licensure.

Preferred Experience: Dental residency and/or 4 years of clinical experience.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit

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: 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

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.

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.