EMERGENCY MEDICINE PHYSICIAN GREAT PLAINS

Physician shall perform essentially the same services as those required by any government service of a Physician with similar experience and in similar duty assignments. Therefore, while specific tasks are outlined as listed below, responsibilities include but are not necessarily inclusive of tasks in which the Physician shall provide.

All services shall be performed in accordance with established principles, practices, and ethics of the medical, and specialty professions/organizations. The standards of performance shall reflect the degree of care, skill, and learning expected of a reasonably prudent Emergency Medicine Physician.

Required Qualification:

• The providers shall be citizens of the United States.
• The emergency department care physician shall have a permanent, current, 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.
• Contractor physicians shall have completed an emergency medicine residency and be board certified, or eligible, by the American Board of Emergency Medicine or the American Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine.
• Current Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advance Life Support (PALS) certification is required.

Job Responsibilities. The duties include but are not limited to the following:

•  Maintain a continuous vigil within the immediate confines of the Emergency Department in order that services are readily and immediately available.
• Obtain a medical history, performing a physical exam as appropriate to the presenting problem, and formulate a diagnosis of the patient’s problem, and secondary diagnosis, as required, to treat the patient.
• Render immediate medical services to those patients determined as emergent.
• Request and interpret laboratory and radiologic tests, as necessary, for diagnosis.
• Provide and order medically indicated treatment.
• Prescribe medication.
• Interpret x-rays and electrocardiograms.
• Suture minor lacerations.
• Treat uncomplicated fractures.
• Refer patients to routinely scheduled clinics of the Outpatient Department.
• Render initial assessments of which Emergency Department patients will require transfer to a tertiary care center and consult the appropriate Indian Health Service physician on-call who in turn will render the final decision concerning transfer and arrange transfer, if indicated.
• Render the initial assessment of which emergency department patients may require admission to the on-site Hospital and consulting the Indian Health Service physician on-call who in turn will render the final decision concerning admissions.
• Chart, record, and complete medical care data in the electronic health record (EHR) by the end of their scheduled shift.
• Consult with appropriate IHS specialist on back up call for all complex cases, which, while not requiring admission to the hospital or transfer to another facility, do require further evaluation by the specialty physician, or more than routine follow up.
• Provide medical advice to patients by telephone when the nurse requests a physician to do so.
• Will respond to all code blue emergencies throughout the hospital.
• Provide basic life support in a first responder status for patients requiring resuscitation outside of the hospital on hospital grounds.
• The emergency department physician will evaluate emergency medical service (EMS) calls, i.e. patient’s en route to the Emergency Department. If the physician is able to determine that the patient will need a higher level of care, then he/she may divert the ambulance to another facility.
• Provider agrees to participate in quality assurance activities that ensure quality patient care as well as efficient use of hospital resources. These activities may include, but not limited to, chart review and discussion with the Clinical Director or his designee.
• Provider agrees to have Emergency Physicians complete any mandatory trainings as determined by a Great Plains Indian Hospital or the Indian Health Service as applicable to medical providers.
• The provider shall advise the Clinical Director or designated representative of any problem encountered, in connection with meeting the patient care needs as required in the statement of work.

Staffing and Scheduling:

Normal shifts for the Emergency Department consist of 12-hour shifts, including 8am to 8pm and 8pm to 8am, with a third shift adjusted to best respond to patient volume.