Physician (Critical Care) Joint Base San Antonio

Time to invest in some new footwear because if you’re San Antonio-bound, you’d better show up in boots! The Alamo City is one of the military’s most envied postings and is often referred to as “Military City USA”. Low cost of living, affordable homes, and the lack of state tax on retirement income are a few financial perks to living and retiring in this Texas city. A robust job market that seems partial to government and defense/security contracting ensures employment opportunities for spouses or transitioning service members. San Antonio is the country’s seventh fastest growing city yet has somehow managed to retain a “small town feel.” Quality schools and friendly locals (most with military ties) are additional  perks to living in San Antonio.

Some things you should know before you get here: trucks are the norm (the bigger, the better), love for The Spurs (NBA) runs deep, the H-E-B obsession is real (it’s a grocery store), rodeos are life, and don’t call it “San Antone”—that’s just wrong. The community boasts a vibrant Hispanic population, and enhances everything from the food, to the music, to community events. You don’t necessarily need to speak Spanish to get around, but you’d better know how to say barbacoa, tamales, and cascarones.

Name brand shopping (IKEA is the latest arrival of note), restaurants, and all variety of entertainment all add to San Antonio’s quality of life. SeaWorld, the San Antonio Zoo, Six Flags Fiesta Texas, and downtown museums are all fun outings for kids and families. Tube or kayak down a river, play or fish in the lakes, or relax by San Antonio’s famous downtown River Walk. Museums, art galleries, and historical landmarks—remember The Alamo?—round out San Antonio’s cultural offerings. Tex-mex cuisine arguably originated here, and some up and coming culinary trendsetters are making a name for themselves in the Pearl District downtown, alongside several notable breweries.

San Antonio has over 300 days of sunshine with some hot summers, mild winters and pleasant spring and fall seasons. San Antonio is in Bexar County (it’s pronounced “BEAR”) in south central Texas, and is just south of the gorgeous Hill Country. It’s only about two hours from Austin, the beach, or the desert.

Working for the Department of Defense comes with an abundance of benefits and perks to include competitive compensation packages, paid-time off, medical benefits, student loan repayments, and retirement package with Thrift Savings Plan to include matching employer contributions.

POSITION DUTIES:

INTRODUCTION:
Incumbent serves as a Pediatric Intensivist in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and Pediatric Sedation Unit within the Department of Pediatrics of a medical treatment facility (MTF). The incumbent is directly or indirectly involved in managing a full range of pediatric critical care cases and problems of unstable patients presenting with life threatening critical issues, illnesses, or injuries.

MAJOR DUTIES:

As a professional in the field of anesthesiology is assigned the full range of cases in the field. The physician is licensed to practice medicine as an Anesthesiologist and is credentialed by Brooke Army Medical Center to provide the services described.

1. Performs as an Intensivist and consultant in pediatric critical care and pediatric sedation for the Department of Pediatrics. Admits pediatric patients to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit/Pediatric Sedation Unit. Develops and follows treatment plans during inpatient stay. Evaluates and treats critically ill pediatric patients, arranging admissions, transfers and medical air evacuations, as needed. Provides urgent and emergent interventional support as needed for critically ill pediatric patients while covering the PICU including but not limited to endotracheal intubation, central venous line and arterial line placement, and placement of thoracostomy tubes. Manages invasive and non-invasive mechanical ventilation. Serves as a consultant to other health care providers and patient family members in difficult cases. Arranges consultations to other subspecialty physicians at this and other hospitals. Orders lab tests and x-rays necessary to complete diagnosis and correlates results with clinical findings. 

2. Serves as a subject matter expert on sedation in the pediatric population, the critical respiratory and hemodynamic support assessment, and interventions required. Serves as both as the primary sedation provider for deep or higher risk sedation and as primary or supervisory provider for low-risk moderate sedations performed by an appropriately credentialed nurse practitioner or residents. Participates in providing continuous coverage of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and sedation service. Advocates for children and their families regarding the appropriate medical, surgical, psychological, social, and development interventions in a multi-disciplinary setting. Provides pediatric critical care education to physicians, nurses, and other ancillary medical personnel either as part of daily rounds or separately.

3. As a staff Pediatric Intensivist in a Pediatric Residency program, participates in the graduate medical education of the pediatric residents. Acts as preceptor and supervisor of interns, residents, and medical students as outlined MTF's Graduate Medical Education program. Instructs, trains, supervises, and evaluates medical students, physician's assistant students, interns and nurse practitioners to ensure quality, timely and appropriate medical care. Provides feedback and written evaluations to residents as required for Pediatric GME. Serves as a primary educator for Pediatric GME for pediatric critical care resident education. Arranges training events to include simulation training scenarios and the Pediatric Fundamental Critical Care Course (PFCCS). Conducts teaching conferences and lectures to nursing and medical staff in techniques and theory of general pediatrics, pediatric critical care, and pediatric sedation. Supervises quality improvement projects by residents. 

4. Performs administrative responsibilities, to include peer review and patient tracking for quality improvement. Participates in Mass Casualty or mobilization for emergency operational procedures of assigned MTF and of assignment on a temporary basis, to other positions within the Department of Pediatrics. Attends regular Department and Hospital level committee meetings as assigned. (10%)

Performs other duties as assigned.



PERFORMS OTHER DUTIES AS ASSIGNED.

Basic Requirements:

US Citizenship required

Board Certified/Eligible

Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Osteopathy from a school in the United States or Canada approved by a recognized accrediting body in the year of the applicants graduation. [A Doctor of Medicine or equivalent degree from a foreign medical school that provided education and medical knowledge substantially equivalent to accredited schools in the United States may be demonstrated by permanent certification by the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) (or a fifth pathway certificate for Americans who completed premedical education in the United States and graduate education in a foreign country).

Candidates must have a permanent, full, and unrestricted license to practice medicine in a State, District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States.