Attending Physician SNF (55015)

ATTENDING PHYSICIAN-
JOB DESCRIPTION
Reports to Director of Physician Services
Reporting to this position: None, unless assigned
Job Classification: Exempt/ RVU
Position Purpose: Provides comprehensive, resident-centered medical care to
assigned SNF and long-term care residents in accordance with
law, CMS requirements, payer rules, facility policy, and accepted
practice. Care includes geriatric, palliative, and hospice services
when clinically appropriate. This role does not include Medical
Director duties unless separately appointed in writing.

Required Qualifications

❖ MD or DO degree from an accredited university
❖ Current, unrestricted medical license in each state served.
❖ Current DEA registration and controlled-substance authority, as applicable.
❖ Eligible for Medicare, Medicaid, and other payer enrollment; not excluded from any
federal or state healthcare program.
❖ Meets facility and organizational credentialing, privileging, screening, and professional
liability requirements.
❖ Knowledge of federal and state requirements governing physician services in skilled
nursing facilities.
❖ Competent in caring for frail, medically complex, post-acute, and long-term care
residents.
❖ Geriatrics, internal medicine, family medicine, post-acute, hospice, palliative, or long term care experience preferred.
Major Duties and Responsibilities
❖ Serves as the primary physician for assigned residents and provides medical care
consistent with resident choice, facility policy, applicable law, and professional
standards.
❖ Evaluates new admissions, reviews transfer records, confirms orders, identifies immediate
needs, develops treatment plans, manages acute and chronic conditions, orders and
interprets diagnostic tests, prescribes treatment, and provides follow-up care.
❖ Completes required visits within federal and state timeframes, personally performs
physician-only duties, and delegates only as permitted by law and regulation.
❖ Reviews the resident's overall plan of care at each visit, including diagnoses,
medications, tests, function, cognition, nutrition, skin integrity, pain, behavior,
rehabilitation, risks, goals, and response to treatment.
❖ Completes documentation, orders, certifications, and recertifications in a timely,
accurate, signed, and dated manner.
❖ Promptly addresses changes in condition, abnormal results, medication concerns, nursing
requests, consultant recommendations, and urgent clinical issues.
❖ Remains available or arranges qualified physician coverage for urgent and emergency
resident needs.
❖ Collaborates with the interdisciplinary team, including the Medical Director, other
physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nursing staff, pharmacists, therapists,
social workers, dietitians, behavioral health clinicians, hospice and palliative care teams,
consultants, and other healthcare professionals.
❖ Applies evidence-based geriatric principles and considers frailty, cognition, function, falls,
polypharmacy, nutrition, skin integrity, pain, behavioral symptoms, prognosis, quality of
life, treatment burden, advance directives, and resident goals.
❖ Incorporates palliative care principles, manages distressing symptoms, supports advance
care planning and goals-of-care discussions, and documents and communicates
decisions to the care team.
❖ Supports timely hospice evaluation and informed resident choice when appropriate and
coordinates with the hospice Medical Director, hospice team, facility staff, resident,
representative, and caregivers.
❖ Prescribes and monitors medications, responds to pharmacist recommendations, and
supports the safe use of antibiotics, psychotropics, opioids, anticoagulants, insulin, and
other high-risk medications.
❖ Participates in resident care planning, care conferences, quality improvement, and
transitions of care, including transfers, emergency evaluations, referrals, medication
reconciliation, diagnostic follow-up, and discharge planning.
❖ Supports and promotes the Rocky Mountain Care continuum by collaborating across
service lines to ensure seamless transitions and timely access to the most appropriate
level of post-acute, long-term, home-based, palliative, hospice, and supportive care
based on each resident's clinical needs and goals.
❖ Protects resident rights, clearly communicates diagnoses and treatment options, honors
valid healthcare decisions, and supports resident-centered care.
❖ Maintains complete, timely, and accurate medical records and documents and bills
professional services in accordance with Medicare, Medicaid, payer, coding, fraud-and-abuse, and SNF consolidated billing requirements.
Additional Assigned Tasks
❖ Treats all residents with dignity and respect and protects resident rights, preferences,
privacy, and autonomy.
❖ Establishes a culture of compliance by adhering to all facility policies and procedures.
Complies with standards of business conduct, and state/federal regulations and
guidelines.
❖ Follows appropriate safety and hygiene measures at all times to protect residents and
themselves.
❖ Follows facility policy, standards of conduct, and applicable state and federal
requirements.
❖ Maintains confidentiality of protected health information in verbal, written, and
electronic communications.
❖ Reports noncompliance, privacy concerns, abuse, neglect, exploitation,
misappropriation, mistreatment, and unsafe practices as required.
❖ Cooperates with investigations, surveys, audits, peer review, quality improvement,
emergency preparedness, and risk-management activities.
❖ Follows infection prevention, occupational safety, emergency preparedness, and
exposure-control requirements.
❖ Completes required education, training, health screening, and competencies.
❖ Maintains licensure, DEA registration, credentials, payer enrollment, CME, and
professional liability coverage.
❖ Performs other duties consistent with the physician agreement, scope of practice, and
law.

Personal Skills and Traits Desired/Physical Requirements/Working Conditions

❖ Strong clinical judgment and knowledge of geriatric and post-acute medicine.
❖ Effective verbal, written, and interpersonal communication.
❖ Ability to collaborate with physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, facility
employees, residents, representatives, and other professionals.
❖ Ability to respond promptly to changes in condition and urgent needs.
❖ Commitment to resident-centered, evidence-based, ethical, and compassionate care.
❖ Ability to exercise independent judgment within an interdisciplinary team.
❖ Strong organization, documentation, time-management, and follow-through skills.
❖ Proficiency with electronic medical record and required clinical systems.
❖ Ability to remain professional and composed in stressful or complex situations.
❖ Ability to move through resident-care areas, communicate, review records, and perform
examinations and related duties.
❖ May be exposed to infectious disease, bodily fluids, hazardous substances, and
emotionally difficult situations.
❖ Meets applicable health, safety, and infection-control requirements, with reasonable
accommodation as required.

Compliance as a Condition of Employment and Performance Appraisal
Agreement to abide by all standards, professional standards, payer requirements and policies
and procedures of the facility, including the facility’s compliance and ethics program, is a
condition of employment and/or engagement. Compliance is considered in performance
evaluations. Violations, including failure to report known violations, will result in disciplinary
action, up to and including termination.
This job description is intended to convey the general scope of the major duties and
responsibilities inherent in this position. Other tasks not listed here may be assigned by the a
supervisor or governing body. Periodic revision may be necessary to reflect changes in
expectations place on long term care by various governmental agencies. The job description will
be reviewed and/or revised annually and as needed.