Togus, Maine
Posted: 17-Sep-24
Location: Togus, Maine
Type: Full Time
Salary: $240,000-$300,000
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Salary Details:
Internal Number: Togus, Maine
Our Psychiatrists provide care in the Inpatient Psychiatric Unit at the VA Maine Healthcare System (VAMHS). The Mental Health Service (MHS) provides care at the Togus campus, and Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs). Services at Togus include: the Mental Health Clinic at the Togus campus, our largest outpatient clinic; a locked inpatient unit; an Addiction Services program; an Integrated Primary Care (IPC) team; a Mental Health Intensive Case Management (MHICM) team; a psychology training program with interns and post-doctoral residents; and provision of Compensation and Pension mental health evaluations. VAMHS MHSL has an active "tele-mental health program". The MH Service is participating in collaborative research projects with other research sites, and we expect this research to increase. In collaboration with the VAMHS Associate Chief of Staff for Education, the MHS is involved in teaching medical students, psychiatry residents, social workers, interns, Licensed Clinical Professional Counselors (LCPC), and other trainees.
Facility
The VA Maine Healthcare System provides outstanding health care, trains America’s future health care providers, and conducts important medical research.
We provide health care services at 10 locations serving Maine. Facilities include our Togus VA Medical Center in Augusta, seven community-based outpatient clinics in Bangor, Calais, Lewiston, Lincoln, Portland, Presque Isle, Rumford, and two Access Clinics in Fort Kent and Houlton
The VA Maine Healthcare System is one of the leading health care systems serving Veterans in the VA New England Healthcare System. We’re an innovative care center within the VA New England Healthcare System (VISN 1), which includes medical centers and clinics in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Rhode Island.
At the Togus VA Medical Center, we conduct research to discover knowledge, develop VA scientists and health care leaders, and create innovations that advance health care for Veterans and the nation. We offer Veterans the opportunity to participate in and benefit from our work. Our goal is to use research to promote better health and health care for all.
Major research areas include: Moral Injury, Health Care System Resilience, Million Veterans Program, Post operative Opiate Use, Neuropsychological Function Testing, Whole Health Involvement and Medication Compliance.
Togus VA Medical Center is a general medicine and teaching hospital that provides a full range of health services for Veterans, with state-of-the-art technology as well as education and research. We offer specialized training programs in advanced general dentistry, clinical psychology, and neuropsychology.
We maintain affiliations with 25 Colleges and Universities, including: University of New England College of Medicine, University of Maine School of Nursing, University of Southern Maine, New England College of Optometry, University of Connecticut School of Pharmacy, Husson University School of Pharmacy, Boston College, Boston University, Creighton University, Maine Dartmouth Family Medicine, Maine Medical Center, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, Northern Lights Medical System, Nova Southeastern University, Pepperdine University, Southern and Central Maine Community Colleges, St. Johns University, Tufts University, University of Albany, University of Florida, University of Mississippi, University of Nebraska, University of New Hampshire, University of North Carolina, University of Rhode Island
VA Maine Healthcare System's Togus VA Medical Center (VAMC) is a Joint Commission accredited, complexity Level 1c facility in Augusta, Maine that serves over 42, 500 Veterans. Full-time community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs) are located in Bangor, Calais, Lewiston, Lincoln, Portland, Presque Isle and Rumford. Part-time access clinics are located in Fort Kent and Houlton.
Togus VAMC is a 67-operating bed facility with general medical, surgical, intermediate and mental health beds, as well as a 100 beds including hospice, dementia, long-stay, and skilled. The oldest veterans' facility in the country, having opened in the fall of 1866, Togus is located five miles east of Augusta, the state capital. Togus campus encompasses 500+ acres of buildings and natural woodlands serving as natural habitats for Maine's wildlife. Additionally, the National Cemetery is located on the Togus campus.
The Togus VA Medical Center property was originally used as a summer resort called Togus Springs. Togus Springs was established in 1859 by Horace Beals, a wealthy granite merchant from Rockland, Maine. The name “Togus” comes from the Native American word Worromontogus, which means “mineral water.”
Togus Springs resort closed during the Civil War in 1863. The site was converted into a Veteran residential facility. The first Veteran was admitted on Nov. 10, 1866.
Essential Job Functions
- Performing initial clinical diagnostic examinations and formulating initial treatment plans for patients.
- Providing medication management services. Provision of psychotherapy services is restricted to clinicians who are trained, certified and credentialed in the provision of VA evidence-based therapy practices.
- Facilitating admissions to inpatient MH unit. Coordinating care with inpatient Psychiatric, or Medical-Surgical, physicians.
- Serving on Medical Staff Committees or representing the MHSL on special Medical Center projects or initiatives as directed by MHSL management.
Minimum 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.
United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
Degree of Doctor of Medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from one of the schools approved by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the year in which the course of study was completed.
Current, full and unrestricted license to practice medicine or surgery in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia.
Residency Training: Physicians must have completed residency training, approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in an accredited core specialty training program leading to eligibility for board certification. (NOTE: VA physicians involved in academic training programs may be required to be board certified for faculty status.) Approved residencies are: (1) Those approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), b) OR [(2) Those approved by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA),OR (3) Other residencies (non-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of five years of verified practice in the United States), which the local Medical Staff Executive Committee deems to have provided the applicant with appropriate professional training and believes has exposed the physician to an appropriate range of patient care experiences.
Residents currently enrolled in ACGME/AOA accredited residency training programs and who would otherwise meet the basic requirements for appointment are eligible to be appointed as "Physician Resident Providers" (PRPs). PRPs must be fully licensed physicians (i.e., not a training license) and may only be appointed on an intermittent or fee-basis. PRPs are not considered independent practitioners and will not be privileged; rather, they are to have a "scope of practice" that allows them to perform certain restricted duties under supervision. Additionally, surgery residents in gap years may also be appointed as PRPs.
Proficiency in spoken and written English.
Board eligible or Board Certified in Psychiatry
Preferred Experience: At least 1 year of clinical experience in performing initial clinical diagnostic examinations and formulating treatment plans for Psychiatric patients in both inpatient and outpatient settings.
Eligible applicants must be physically and mentally able to perform efficiently the essential functions of the position, with or without reasonable accommodation, without hazard to themselves or others. Depending on the essential duties of a specific position, usable vision, color vision, hearing or speech may be required. however, in most cases, a specific physical condition or impairment of a specific function may be compensated for by the satisfactory use of a prosthesis or mechanical aid.
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.
Benefits
In addition to the honor of serving America’s Heroes, a career at VHA provides a robust total reward$ package and offers many benefits including:
Flexible work schedules and shifts, Low patient-provider ratios, Robust insurance coverage, The ability to work anywhere in the country with one active license, Stable employment with competitive salary and regular pay increases, 50 days annual paid time off (26 days paid annual leave, 13 days paid annual sick leave, 11 paid federal holidays) in addition to other leave options including paid parental leave, Generous education support programs, including loan repayment and reimbursement, Unprecedented federal retirement benefits including a traditional pension (5 years’ vesting) and a federal 401K (TSP) with up to 5% in employer contributions, VA’s Diversity, People & Culture.
Location
Located in central Maine, approximately 55 miles north of Portland, is Maine’s capital city, Augusta. Augusta was chartered as a city in 1849.Augusta is just over 58 Square miles, and borders the towns of Manchester, Sidney, Vassalboro, Windsor and Chelsea. The capital city is also the easternmost state capital in the United States. As of 2022, there were roughly 19,066 people and 8,565 households in Augusta. Although the city is the third-least populous state capital in the United States (after Montpelier, Vermont and Pierre, South Dakota, there are lots of exciting things to explore throughout Augusta.
Minimum 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.
United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
Degree of Doctor of Medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from one of the schools approved by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the year in which the course of study was completed.
Current, full and unrestricted license to practice medicine or surgery in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia.
Residency Training: Physicians must have completed residency training, approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in an accredited core specialty training program leading to eligibility for board certification. (NOTE: VA physicians involved in academic training programs may be required to be board certified for faculty status.) Approved residencies are: (1) Those approved by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), b) OR [(2) Those approved by the American Osteopathic Association (AOA),OR (3) Other residencies (non-US residency training programs followed by a minimum of five years of verified practice in the United States), which the local Medical Staff Executive Committee deems to have provided the applicant with appropriate professional training and believes has exposed the physician to an appropriate range of patient care experiences.
Residents currently enrolled in ACGME/AOA accredited residency training programs and who would otherwise meet the basic requirements for appointment are eligible to be appointed as "Physician Resident Providers" (PRPs). PRPs must be fully licensed physicians (i.e., not a training license) and may only be appointed on an intermittent or fee-basis. PRPs are not considered independent practitioners and will not be privileged; rather, they are to have a "scope of practice" that allows them to perform certain restricted duties under supervision. Additionally, surgery residents in gap years may also be appointed as PRPs.
Proficiency in spoken and written English.
Board eligible or Board Certified in Psychiatry
Preferred Experience: At least 1 year of clinical experience in performing initial clinical diagnostic examinations and formulating treatment plans for Psychiatric patients in both inpatient and outpatient settings.