Position Information

The Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Northern California Healthcare System (VANCHCS), is seeking a Chief for Radiology Service. VANCHCS serves an area consisting of more than 377,700 veterans dispersed over a wide geographic area spanning approximately 40,000 square miles. The health system is comprised of a medical center in Sacramento; a rehabilitation and extended care facility in Martinez; seven outpatient clinics, a Substance Abuse Treatment Center in Oakland; and dental clinics in Vallejo, Sacramento, and Redding.

The Sacramento VA Medical Center is a 50-bed, state-of-the-art, inpatient facility offering a full range of comprehensive health care services including medical, surgical, primary and mental health care. The medical center, which is comprised of 28 medical-surgical beds, 12 TCU beds, 10 ICU beds, and a four-room operating suite, also houses a cardiac catheterization lab, a gastrointestinal & endoscopy suite, angiography capability and 16,000 square-feet of research laboratory. The medical center offers a wide range of outpatient and diagnostic services, including mammography, MRI, CT, and PET scanning.

VANCHCS has maintained an active affiliation with the University of California, Davis since 1975. Nearly 400 university residents (approximately 69 full time employee equivalent (FTEE)and over 100 medical students are trained at the Sacramento VA Medical Center, Martinez Outpatient Clinic and Center for Rehabilitation & Extended Care each year.

Radiology currently has a staff of 15 full time Imaging Physicians and five part-time Physicians.  We   have Imagers interpreting from two sites, Martinez and Mather, and six sites where we offer Radiologic services.   We have over 120 Personnel in the Service.  We perform 130,000   Imaging exams per year.  All of our Physician staff are Fellowship trained at leading institutions.   We have individuals with sub specialty CAQs in Neuro, IR, and Nuclear Medicine. 

We have two 3 Tesla MR and two 1.5 Tesla MR.  We have four CT scanners.  One of the CT scanners at Mather which is currently being installed is a dual Source Siemens Force.  We have echo machines at all sites and fluoroscopy at three sites.    We have 3 D Mammography at four of our sites and perform Breast biopsy and Breast MR.  We are currently installing a new PET CT.  We have four SPECT CT scanners.   We are installing two new Azurion Phillips Interventional rooms at Mather   They are top of the line and will be shared with Cardiology and Vascular Surgery. The rooms are located between Radiology and the ED and are being built to OR standards.   We perform all IR procedures.  Our two full-time IR are SIRS credentialed.  We will be adding TARE procedures using Yttrium 90.   We are embarking on Theragnostics in Nuclear Medicine.  Most of our Imaging equipment is less than five years old. 

We are developing a lung cancer screening program in concert with Primary Care and Pulmonary.  We also will in the near future offer Virtual Colonoscopy. 

Our two Imaging interpretation sites are serviced by a PACS system allowing interpretation of images acquired at any of our six sites.   We work closely with the VA NTP.  They are   the VA night hawk service that interpret after hours images for us.  They provide services to the VA system Nation- wide and are expanding from 38 to 100 Radiologists. 

A node of the VA NTP is being located on our Mather campus allowing for increased cooperation with our Service.  We participate in a Joint VA DOD program with the Radiation Therapy department at David Grant Medical Center.  A Shared Radiation Oncologist, Physicist, Dosimetrist, and six Therapists are VA employees and are a part of our Radiology Organization Chart. 

Most of the UCD Radiology residents rotate through our facility.  Two Residents rotate through at a time in two-week blocks.  There are significant opportunities for collaborative Research both with the VA Physicians and the University.  A Clinical appointment is available at UCDMC which is located 11 miles from the Mather Campus.  We maintain a very collegial relationship with the UCD Radiology Department and with the Chair and Residency Program Director. 

*Must be a Citizen of the United States

*Must be proficient in written and spoken English

*Must have current, full and unrestricted U.S. state license to practice medicine

*Residency Training in Radiology, with Board Certification

*Fellowship Training preferred in Chest, Cardiac, Neuro, or Body Imaging

*Meet requirements to obtain and maintain academic appointment with our affiliate university, University of California Davis (UCSD).

Community Information

Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's estimated 2018 population of 501,334 makes it the sixth-largest city in California and the 9th largest capital in the United States. Sacramento is the seat of the California Assembly, the Governor of California, and Supreme Court of California, making it the state's political center and a hub for lobbying and think tanks. Sacramento is also the cultural and economic core of the Sacramento metropolitan area, which had 2010 population of 2,414,783, making it the fifth largest in California

Sacramento offers a range of exciting, educational and historic attractions sure to entertain all. Families will want to check out the cheetahs, jaguars and crocodiles at the Zoo while political buffs should head to the state Capitol, which features a park and museum on California history, or the Governor's Mansion. Anyone with an interest in trains will enjoy the Railroad Museum's massive collection of antique locomotives. Everyone will enjoy the restaurants and shops of historic Old Sacramento on the city's lovely waterfront.

Benefits and Features

Expected Salary range will be competitive for well qualified BC Chief of Radiology in the academic rank with the possibility of Recruitment/Relocation Incentive and includes full benefits and features package to support high quality professional practice and favorable work-life-family balance.  The VA supports a healthy work-life-family balance by providing Staff with a robust benefits package and fosters an environment where more time is spent on medical practice and less on business tasks. VA does this by offering: Paid Time Off in the form of 26 Days paid annual leave, 13 Days paid sick leave per year, 10 Federal holidays with pay, and 5-Day paid absence to attend approved CME courses. Insurance to include Health-Dental-Vision care insurance programs to choose from with premiums partially paid by VA; Flexible Spending Accounts; Term life insurance, family, and additional coverage options are available with the cost shared by the Federal Government; and Long-term care insurance available as an option. Federal Retirement Plan thru the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) - A three-tiered retirement plan composed of 1) Social Security benefits; 2) FERS-FRAE basic benefits (pension); and 3) Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) which is a 401K-type plan.

About the VA

Department of Veterans Affairs offers Veterans the largest, most technologically advanced integrated health care system in the United States. We operate more than 1,400 sites of care, including 153 medical centers, 909 ambulatory and community-based outpatient clinics, 135 nursing homes, 232 Veterans centers, 47 readjustment counseling centers, and 108 comprehensive home-care programs, across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. Territories.

To Explore This Physician Opportunity Further

Email copy of your CV & Cover Letter to Henry "Hank" Laguatan, VA National Healthcare Recruitment Consultant @ Henry.laguatan@va.gov or call (206) 459-7927.