Today marks a key milestone in a new physician’s career: Match Day. This is when medical students learn where they will begin their residencies, filling tens of thousands of positions across the country, including many here at VA.
Veterans will see many of these newly minted residents as clinical trainees at their local VA medical center, as nearly 75,000 medical students and residents rotate through VA each year, learning about our mission as they learn to be practicing physicians.
In turn, VA offers unparalleled benefits for primary care physicians who chose to turn their VA training into a career, benefits that offer career satisfaction that you won’t find anywhere else.
One license, nationwide
Whether it’s by choice or because of a personal commitment, sometimes you want to move to another city or even another state. It’s a big country with a lot to see, so when the time comes to make a move, there’s no need to leave your VA career behind.
As a VA physician, you’ll have an active, unrestricted license that allows you to work with Veterans at any of our more than 1,300 facilities across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and even some U.S territories. That’s a flexibility you can’t find anywhere else.
Interested in pursuing a career in a rural facility? We’re leading a nationwide hiring surge to recruit health care providers to our rural facilities, which can include recruitment, relocation, and retention incentives and access to extensive loan repayment programs.
Relief from student debt
When you commit to serving Veterans, VA finds ways to reward that choice. Through access to student loan repayment options, we can help you significantly reduce the weight of your loans and start planning for a debt-free future.
If you want to become a primary care physician at VA, our Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) is available to assist in repaying your student loans. For physicians, EDRP provides up to $40,000 a year, or $200,000 over a five-year period.
You may also qualify for the Specialty Education Loan Repayment Program (SELRP), which offers physicians the potential for loan repayment of $40,000 each year, up to a maximum of $160,000 over four years.
“These programs afford you the opportunity to focus on your education,” said Dr. Patrick Youngblood, VA Scholarships program manager, “so that when you come to VA you don’t have to worry about repayment of a large debt.”
Patient-centric care
For any physician, time to spend with your patients is a priority, but one that might be considered a luxury in other systems. At VA, our physicians are able to provide the highest quality health care in a time frame that works for Veterans and providers.
“There’s an appeal in what we offer in that we treat patients, not numbers,” explained James Marfield, associate director of VA’s National Recruitment Service. “Our work is about what the patient needs, not about the bottom line or what insurance will reimburse. That’s liberating for the people who come to work here.”
Work that matters
Every day working at VA is a chance to spend time with those who have served our country and develop genuine bonds with Veterans who have diverse histories and complex medical concerns.
Those who work here wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I just don’t see any profession that really tops what I’m doing. I’m taking care of the most elite Americans. The ones who have fought for this country, have lived to talk about it, and are now receiving the care that they have fought for,” said Dr. Lee Whitaker, medical director for the St. Thomas VA Clinic in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. “That’s what keeps me here. That’s what gives me strength.”
Work at VA
For primary care physicians, VA has all the benefits you need. Join our team.
- LEARN what VA has to offer physicians.
- EXPLORE the benefits of a VA career.
- FIND a VA physician recruiter.
- SEARCH for an opportunity near you.
