Physician Assistant

The Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology is seeking a Physician Assistant/Advanced Practice Provider (APP) to provide care to an underserved population of patients. The role’s purpose is to bridge the gap of social injustices in health care through our flagship comprehensive care center. This unique role provides care to patients in inpatient and urgent care settings and for well-health maintenance visits. This individual will care for complex medical conditions while building a strong rapport with patients over time.

Specific Duties & Responsibilities

Clinical Responsibilities

• Assess each patient that presents to the center in crisis and write orders for patients. The assessment will include taking a history and physical.
• Write prescriptions for patients who have called in advance and who present to the infusion center for refills. The APP will document narcotics in the opioid database in collaboration with other prescribers.
• Collaborate with the multi-disciplinary team including psychiatry, nursing, social work, community health workers, and hematologists, and place necessary referrals.
• Assist with providing comprehensive and episodic care to patients with sickle cell disease. This includes taking a history, completing a physical assessment, and interpreting diagnostic tests.
• Provide routine health maintenance for patients with sickle cell disease. This includes a review of the patient chart and diagnostic information to assess that labs and radiologic testing are being completed as per protocol.
• Sees ad assist the primary medical team on sickle cell patients admitted to the hospital.
• Provide inpatient coverage for the general hematology service.
• Propose and implement medical therapy and treatment plans for patients seen in the clinic followed by collaborating physicians.
• Provide chronic pain management, including having patients sign pain contracts, refilling medications, and tracking prescribed narcotics.
• Monitor patients while on therapy to evaluate for side effects and to evaluate for expected outcomes.
• Adjust and start new medications as indicated by patient condition.
• Counsel and teach patients and family members regarding disease process and expected outcomes.
• Assist with the management of chronic transfusion patients.
• Make referrals to other specialists as indicated by the patient’s condition.
• Dictate clinic notes and other pertinent data necessary for the care of the patient.
• Provide information to referring physicians.
• Monitor patients who are on hydroxyurea and other disease-modifying therapy.
• Provide presentations on sickle cell disease for other healthcare professionals.
• Coordinate and act as a sub-investigator in phase II, III, and IV clinical trials. This includes preparing and submitting documentation to the IRB. Enrolling patients in studies by completing health assessments and physical examinations.
• Review lab work and diagnostic tests and make changes as indicated by lab results while following protocol. This also includes potentially discontinuing a patient on a study for reasons of non-compliance or other issues.
• Attend clinic meetings and other meetings with program leadership.

Customer Service & Teamwork Responsibilities

• Show professionalism in person and on the telephone with coworkers, patients, visitors, and supervisors.
• Utilize proper telephone etiquette. Warmly greets patients and visitors. Handle and resolve patient complaints non-defensively and without blame on other employees. Seek to satisfy a dissatisfied customer.
• Generous in assisting and supporting others.
• Participate in coverage of the Sickle Cell Clinic.
• Sensitive to the interrelationship of both people and functions within the department.
• Ability to work 4 days a week, including weekends (every 5th) and holidays, as required to meet patient care needs.

Special Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Advanced clinical skills and the ability to apply theoretical concepts as part of a multi-disciplinary healthcare team providing care to patients and their families.
• Ability to diagnose and implement a medical care plan for the short and long-term care of acute and chronic health conditions in the intensive care unit.
• Ability to apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills; function independently and effectively; adapt to a dynamic and often changing work environment.
• Excellent organizational skills
• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple tasks simultaneously.
• Possess advanced interpersonal skills necessary to collaborate and communicate effectively with all members of the interdisciplinary healthcare team to enhance p