Physician – Pulmonologist – Critical Care
Department of Veterans Affairs
Summary
The Physician is assigned to the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System Pulmonary section. The physician will be on a rotating schedule covering a variety of clinical services including, but not limited to, the intensive care unit (ICU), inpatient pulmonary consultation service, outpatient pulmonary clinic, and outpatient sleep clinic. Schedule assignments will be based on the needs of the pulmonary section.
Duties
- VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package.
- VHA Physician Total Rewards.
- This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until December 31, 2026 or until positions are filled.
- Eligible applications received will be referred at regular intervals or as additional vacancies occur.
- The physician is responsible for providing care for to veterans admitted to the ICU or hospital or hospital with acute respiratory failure, acute severe COPD exacerbations, severe asthma exacerbation, pneumonia, ARDS, and septic shock and other life-threatening pulmonary conditions.
- The physician is responsible for providing care to outpatient veterans with COPD, asthma, bronchiectasis, sarcoidosis, hypoxic and/or hypercapnic respiratory failure, pleural effusions, pulmonary nodules, and other pulmonary conditions in addition to sleep apnea.
- The physician will supervise health care trainees including medical students, interns, residents, and fellows.
- Duties include, but are not limited to, the following: Providing care to veterans admitted to the intensive care unit.
- Providing pulmonary consultations to inpatient veterans.
- Providing care to veterans in the pulmonary and sleep clinics.
- Perform diagnostic bronchoscopy and endobronchial ultrasound.
- Perform central venous catheter and arterial line placement.
- Perform endotracheal intubation in addition to non-invasive and invasive ventilator management.
- Perform thoracentesis, thoracostomy tube placement, and tunneled pleural catheter placement Perform interpretation of pulmonary function tests (PFTs), arterial blood gas (ABG), and ambulatory pulse oximetry studies.
- Perform interpretation of home sleep studies and overnight oximetry studies 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 Work Schedule: Monday – Fridays; 8:00am – 4:30pm.
- Rotating calls / weekends
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. 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.
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. NOTE: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application.
NOTE: If your school was accredited by LCME or COCA at the time of graduation but is no longer listed on the LCME or COCA website, you must provide documentation of accreditation with your application packet.
How You Will Be Evaluated
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.
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.
About this role
The Physician – Pulmonologist – Critical Care position with the Department of Veterans Affairs is based in Temple, Texas. The Physician is assigned to the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System Pulmonary section. The role pays $360,000 to $400,000 per year.
Day to day, the work involves VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. The full list of duties, conditions, and required documents appears in the official announcement linked on this page.
Who should apply
This role calls for United States citizenship and a valid driver's license. Be prepared for a pre-employment drug screening as part of the hiring process. Match your federal resume directly to the announcement's wording so a reviewer can confirm each requirement in writing. For this Physician – Pulmonologist – Critical Care position with the Department of Veterans Affairs in Temple, Texas, confirm you meet each requirement before applying.
How competitive it is
With pay reaching $360,000 to $400,000 per year, this is a senior professional position that will draw highly credentialed applicants. Based in Temple, Texas, it competes within that local market, which can mean lighter competition than major metropolitan postings. The announcement closes on December 31, 2026, and federal postings can close early once enough applications arrive, so applying promptly is wise.
This overview is general guidance from Job Army to help you understand the role. Always read the official announcement for exact duties, qualifications, and requirements before applying.
