Physician (Ophthalmology - Section Chief)

Summary

This position is located in the Section of Ophthalmology under the Clinical Directorate of Surgical Services at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center (FHCC) in North Chicago, Illinois. FHCC is larger than just a single facility, but rather a system of facilities throughout Northeastern Illinois which provide medical and dental services to U.S. Military Active Duty, Recruits, Veterans, and eligible beneficiaries.

Duties

The Section Chief of Ophthalmology reports to the Clinical Director of Surgical Services and oversees all operations and staff within the Section. The incumbent supervises all clinical providers, serves as primary point of contact, and provides training, documentation, workflow guidance, and clinical system optimization. The Chief ensures clinical quality and service standards, collaborates with hospital/department leaders, and acts as liaison among staff, IT, and other departments. Responsibilities include organizational projects, committees, and initiatives to support Section and facility needs. Duties include: Developing vision, mission, and strategic goals for the Section. Overseeing administrative and clinical supervision of Section staff, ensuring high-quality, efficient care aligned with VA, DoD, and relevant external standards. Providing comprehensive patient care (outpatient & inpatient) using Oracle-Cerner EMR, documenting all encounters appropriately, monitoring open encounter and open consult management reports. .Conducting admissions, histories, physicals, discharge summaries, rounds, AIMS evaluations, and attending relevant clinical meetings. Supporting program managers on planning, operations, HR, budget, equipment, environmental issues, process improvement, and patient advocacy. Representing the Section in business outside Ophthalmology. Sharing in clinical coverage, including on-call and after-hours care, ensuring 24/7 coverage. Balancing clinical, OR, and administrative duties according to facility and national labor mapping standards. Participating in all aspects of Ophthalmology programs, program development, privilege delineation, and credentialing. Developing and reviewing Section policies, regulatory compliance, data review, and quality improvement projects. Addressing patient and safety concerns, responding to complaints and event reports, working with the Quality Office for improvements. Cross-covering patient care for colleagues as necessary. Managing reporting staff, including evaluations, proficiency reports, discipline, and credentialing. Serving as Acting Clinical Director as needed. Pursuing and supporting teaching/academic missions in coordination with affiliated university teaching program, including resident supervision and student education. Clinical responsibilities: Assess, diagnose, develop treatment for eye/ocular adnexa conditions. Perform medical/surgical eye procedures, laser/cryo surgeries. Expected surgical volume of 350-400 cataracts per year. Additionally, corneal vitreoretinal, oculoplastic and glaucoma subspeciality surgeries and procedures are performed. Support development of a regional Center of Excellence for refractive surgery/corneal cross-linking. Collaborate with other specialists; manage vision-affecting medical disorders. Educate patients/families, document care, participate in call schedules, and maintain hospital privileges. Support the facility's readiness mission for military and veteran patients. Strong communication, leadership, and organizational skills are essential. The Section Chief collaborates with an interdisciplinary team, supports provider and staff development, and participates in committees and process improvements. Academic appointment and teaching commitments with the academic affiliate, the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences is encouraged and expected. The position supports multi-site care, facilities, and maintains high standards of care, compliance, and readiness. Other duties as assigned Work Schedule: Monday through Friday 7:30 am - 4:00 pm; daily work hours may vary due to patient care needs and are bound by VHA Title 38 regulations. As a Section Chief of Ophthalmology, the candidate with work as equally clinical partner with the existing Ophthalmology team, responsible to create, publish and share equally in the on-call schedule to ensure the facility has 24/7 coverage for Ophthalmic Surgery. 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 VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. VHA Physician Total Rewards.

Requirements

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. 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 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 and evaluation

Your application, resume, C.V., and/or other supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment. NOTE: A formal pay-setting process will be used to determine your salary. The salary may be at any point in the range listed for this vacancy. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position. Veterans' Preference Note: Preference eligible candidates and other Veterans will be given preference when qualification of candidates are approximately equal for Title 38 positions in VHA. When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.

Education

Degree of Doctor of Medicine or an equivalent degree resulting from a course of education in allopathic medicine or osteopathic medicine. The degree must have been obtained from an institution whose accreditation was in place for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved schools are: Schools of medicine accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) for the year in which the degree was granted. Schools of osteopathic medicine approved by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) for the year in which the degree was granted. For foreign medical graduates not covered in (1) or (2) above, confirmation must be made that the medical school meets (or met) Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) eligibility requirement for year graduated. 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.

How to apply

To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. To apply for this position online, complete steps 1 and 2 above by 11:59 PM (ET) on 09/30/2026 to receive consideration. Please note, this announcement may close prior to the closing date indicated if the position is filled through other means. If you are unable to apply online before the closing date click here and include the OCA-13013123-26-AB in the Notes field. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

Required documents

To apply for this position, you must submit a C.V. and/or resume. Other documents may be requested later in the process if needed. Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field. Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field.

Additional information

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.