Dentist (Regular FT) Referral Coordination Team
About This Position
Join our team in Salem, VA as a Full Time Dentist with EDRP benefits! The Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program.
You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) determined by the Education Loan Repayment Services. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply.
Qualifications
Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. General Dentist assigned to the Referral Coordination Team (RCT) and Community Care and aligned under the Referral Coordination Initiative Operations Manager under the Access and Scheduling Management Service will meet basic requirements and hold a degree satisfactory to the Administrator, meet the physical standards as described by the Administrator and will be licensed to practice without restrictions in a state or territory of the United States. Each General Dentist will establish and maintain professional relationships with the Referral Coordination Team and in-house dental service and staff, resulting in improved patient care.
A Dentist must maintain clinical privileges at the VA Healthcare System and provide up to 50% clinical time (patient care) during the RCI position. The General Dentistry dental officer shall be proficient in all aspects of general dentistry, including the ability to perform selected specialty services. Dentist Basic Requirements A degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery or dental medicine resulting from a course of education in dentistry.
The degree must have been obtained from one of the schools approved by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved schools are (1) United States and Canadian schools of dentistry listed by the Commission on Dental Accreditation(CODA), in the list published for the year in which the course of study was completed. (2) Schools (including foreign schools) accepted by the licensing body of a State, Territory, or Commonwealth (i.e., Puerto Rico), or the District of Columbia as qualifying for full and unrestricted licensure provided the licensure requirements include a written examination measuring science achievement and a performance examination measuring clinical competence certification, and must obtain a copy of the ECFMG certificate, if claimed by the applicant. ~AND~ Completed, or you are currently completing, a residency program in general practice or specialty, or comparable experience as a dentist actively involved in treating medically compromised patients. ~AND~ Currently hold, or will hold, a current, full and unrestricted license to practice dentistry in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia.
Note: Dentists must maintain current registration in the State of licensure if this is a requirement for continuing active, current licensure. Preferred Experience: Advanced technological and administrative knowledge in programs such as Microsoft Office Suite (Examples: Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Word, etc.)
NOTE: The Under Secretary for Health or designee in Central Office may approve the appointment under authority of 38 U.S.C. 7405 of a graduate of a school of dentistry not covered above if the candidate is to be assigned to a research or academic 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. (Also see paragraph 2d(4) below on waiver of licensure provisions.) The Under Secretary for Health or designee may also approve the appointment of a graduate of a school of dentistry not covered above as a resident under 38 U.S.C. 7406. c. Residency or Comparable Experience.
Completion of an approved residency program in general practice or specialty, or comparable experience as a dentist actively involved in treating medically compromised patients. d. Licensure and Registration (1) Dentists (Except Residents). Current, full, and unrestricted license to practice dentistry in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States (i.e., Puerto Rico), or in the District of Columbia.
The dentist must maintain current registration in the State of licensure if this is a requirement for continuing active, current licensure. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is
- The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of 15 to 15.
Major Duties
VA offers a comprehensive total rewards package. Transcripts and licensure must be included in application. Below you will find all of the expectations of this job opportunity. - Adhering to the requirements as outlined in the VHA Referral Coordination Initiative Implementation Guidebook. - Ensure relevant information is communicated across dental services, with the aim to provide Veterans with appropriate and timely care options. - Identify possible barriers to care with the Veteran, family, and clinical care team to provide a team-based plan of care. - Enhance the quality of clinical outcomes and Veteran satisfaction while offering the Veteran the opportunity to make an informed decision about their care. - Reduce the average time it takes to schedule appointments, whether the appointment is in the VA's direct care system or in the community. - Perform clinical triage of the dental referral (consult) - Coordinate with other specialties, as needed. - Document the availability and selection of VA Care options and modalities, and Community Care options. - Utilize the provided script while communicating directly with the Veteran to ensure the most appropriate care option and modality of care is offered. - Perform a warm hand-off with the appropriate care option: - Disposition the specialty referral appropriately (consult).
Coordinate Care in the Community (CITC) - Remove non-value-added steps to optimize the use of clinical staff for the benefit of the Veteran. - Have clinical knowledge of a variety of dental procedures and dental specialties. - Maximize the interaction with the Veteran to identify needs and gather preferences to ensure that appropriate modality of care is offered. - Provide clinical and administrative consultation and ongoing education to Primary Care and Specialty Care. - Approve pending treatment plans, apply appropriate SEOCs, and priorities within 72 hours of initiation of a consult. - Coordinates with VACC Dental Advanced Medical Support Assistants. - Evaluate diagnostic information provided to the VA through community care providers. Request additional information where necessary. - Evaluate and weigh multiple treatment options. - Review patient medical records and determine limiting factors in the patient's dental care to include extant records in CPRS, DRM+, and Sidexis. - Communicate authorizations and changes to requested procedures. - Display knowledge of dental eligibilities as delineated in VA Handbook 1130.01. - Enter authorized care into Dental Community Care consults. - Communicate with the Chief of Dental regarding patient care.
- Make oral and radiographic examinations of the oral cavity
- Diagnose pathological or irregular oral conditions.
- Administer local anesthesia.
- Perform routine and complex restoration of teeth.
- Perform simple and complex extractions of teeth.
- Perform alveoloplasty and other routine surgical procedures.
- Perform prosthetic dentistry to include immediate dentures, full dentures, partial dentures, crowns, and fixed bridge work.
- Perform routine endodontic procedures on single and multi-canal teeth.
- Perform routine and surgical procedures within the scope of a general dentist.
- Approve pending treatment plans, apply appropriate SEOCs and priorities within 72 hours of initiation of a consult.
- Coordinates with VACC Dental Advanced Medical Support Assistants.
- Evaluate diagnostic information provided to the VA through community care providers. Request additional information where necessary.
- Evaluate and weigh multiple treatment options.
- Review patient medical records and determine limiting factors in patient's dental care to include extant records in CPRS, DRM+, and Sidexis/MiPAcs.
- Record the request for service for treatment plans in DRM+ 16. Communicate authorizations and changes to requested procedures.
- Display knowledge of dental eligibilities as delineated in VA Handbook 1130.01.
- Enter authorized care into Dental Community Care consults. Work Schedule: Full-time; Monday - Friday 7:45a - 4:30p Telework: AD-HOC Virtual: This is not a virtual position Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact [email protected], the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more
Conditions of Employment
All qualified candidates encouraged to apply. Open to U.S. Citizens but non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens. 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 dentification 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. Transcripts and licensure must be included in application.
Education
Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.
How You Will Be Evaluated
IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.
Your application, resume, C.V., and/or 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. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.
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.
Additional Information
This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.
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.
How to Apply
All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.
The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 04/29/2026 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12930321. 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.
NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. 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.
Required Documents
To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes: License Resume Transcript 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. The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc.
Cover Letter DD-214/ Statement of Service Disability Letter (Schedule A) Disability Letter (VA) License Resume - If needed (Do NOT upload Resume Twice) ECMFG certificate is applicable (Upload Here) PCS Orders Performance Appraisal Professional Certification Resume Separation Notice (RIF) SF-15 SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Transcript 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.