Job Information  

Job ID: 15549

Position # 00013504

The Augusta University/University of Georgia (AU/UGA) Medical Partnership is recruiting a full time Campus Director of Behavioral Health in Athens, GA for our undergraduate and graduate medical education programs. The Campus Director of Behavioral Health will be responsible for leading, creating, and managing educational activities pertaining to behavioral health at the AU/UGA Medical Partnership and its undergraduate and graduate medical education programs and affiliates. Focus will be placed on educational activities related to wellness, burnout and health promotion, as well as a comprehensive model of care to improve chronic disease management in patient populations. The Campus Director of Behavioral health will support the professional and personal wellness and growth of faculty, residents, medical students and community preceptors.

Background Information

Augusta University and the University of Georgia have partnered to create a four-year medical education program in Athens to help alleviate a statewide shortage of physicians that threatens the health of Georgians. The AU/UGA Medical Partnership combines the significant instructional and research resources of UGA, the state’s flagship land-grant research university, with the expertise of the Medical College of Georgia, AU, Georgia’s only public medical school.  The Medical Partnership has partnered with St. Mary’s Healthcare System and Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center to achieve its educational mission of educating medical students and residents. 

The Opportunity

We are looking for a dynamic, innovative academic behavioral educator with outstanding interpersonal and communication skills to work with our undergraduate and graduate medical education programs. Successful applicants will work closely with medical students, residency program directors, faculty, and residents at both area hospitals, to address burnout and improve wellness.  The successful applicant will also work with collaborative (interdisciplinary) care team members at the internal medicine residency continuity clinics to educate the residents on methods to improve chronic disease management in patients with DM and metabolic syndrome to name a few. The Campus Director of Behavioral Health will work closely with both Internal Medicine Program Directors to develop an educational program that includes topics on advanced genomics, epigenetics, chronic disease prevention and personalized whole person health.

It is expected that the Campus Director of Behavioral Health will maintain 0.7 FTE dedicated to educational, clinical, and administrative affairs. The Campus Director of Behavioral Health shall arrange for educational research grants and sponsorship through public/private partnerships and will maintain 0.3 FTE for these scholarly pursuits.

General Responsibilities

• Establish the behavioral health curriculum along with its goals and objectives for the Internal Medicine residency programs by working collaboratively with the program directors and core faculty at both area hospitals. Implement therapeutic lifestyle change health promotion programs, retreat trainings, and wellbeing initiatives for academic faculty, residents, and medical students. Encourage and support diversity by creating an environment of professionalism, respect, tolerance, and acceptance.

• Maintain a successful and positive learning environment where medical students and residents participate in educationally meaningful activities that contribute to their development as physicians. Develop strong, positive working relationships with medical students, residents, fellows, core faculty, community physician preceptors, residency staff, and AU/UGA Medical Partnership leadership. Maintain active professional licensure and continuing professional education resulting in continuous eligibility to perform clinical work within professional licensure and scope of practice. Perform clinical consultative work at the residency continuity clinics on behalf of partner hospitals within professional licensure and scope of practice. Manage research and grant procurement initiative for chronic disease prevention, health promotion, and personalized medicine. Develop online faculty development and medical student/resident training modules in comprehensive behavioral health. Manage development of mindfulness-based therapeutic lifestyle change (MBTLC) group medical visit programs that are offered to the internal medicine residency program’s patients as well as those in selected community health sites.

The Community

Athens is one of the nation’s quintessential college towns, with a lively restored Victorian-era downtown bustling with shops, dining, and nightlife. This city of 120,000 people is home to the University of Georgia and is known as the birthplace of R.E.M., the B-52’s, and Drive-by Truckers. It is located 61 miles from Atlanta, and less than 4 hours away from both mountains and beaches. To learn more about Athens, see www.visitathensga.com.

Minimum Requirements  

• Doctorate degree (PhD, EdD or PsyD)
• Able to obtain an active, unrestricted professional license to practice in Georgia for those degrees issuing a license.
• Five (5) years full-time professional activity in behavioral health care.
• Teaching experience in a Family or Internal Medicine Residency Program is strongly desirable.
• Experience with grants management and procurement related to personalized medicine, lifestyle interventions and advanced genomics related to chronic disease and health promotion.
• Experience with graduate medical education curricula design and implementation.
• Expertise in contemporary knowledge, skills and attitudes toward the compassionate whole person health care of physicians and patients across the spectrum of ages and life milestones.
• Demonstration of effective teaching methods and leadership skills.
• A record of extramurally funded basic, translational or clinical research and demonstrated ability to balance education, research and clinical care.
• Understand the principles of interpersonal relationships and team dynamics.
• Communicate effectively both verbally and by writing clear concise reports.

Shift/Salary  

Academic Rank and Salary to be commensurate with qualifications and experience of the selected candidate.

How To Apply  

To be considered an applicant for this faculty position, applications (Including CV's and cover letters) can only be accepted through the online application process. Apply online at http://www.augusta.edu/hr/jobs/faculty/.

Application Deadline: Applications will continue to be accepted until the position is filled.

The application packet should include a Curriculum Vitae and a cover letter addressing how the applicant's credentials and experience meet the responsibilities and qualifications of the position. Please upload application materials as one document.

Please do not email CV's or application information to the department.

Three letters of recommendation will be required of the applicant that is selected.

Position Start Date: July 1, 2019 or negotiable

Background Check  

All candidates are required to successfully pass a Background Check review. For specific positions, the final candidate may be subject to a (pre-employment) physical, drug screen, and/or credit check.

The final candidate will be required to provide proof of completed academic degree in the form of an original transcript. Those candidates trained by a foreign institution will also be required to provide an educational/credential evaluation.

Equal Employment Opportunity  

Augusta University is an equal employment, equal access, and equal educational opportunity and affirmative action institution. Also, Augusta University is a federal contractor and desires priority referrals of protected veterans. It is the policy of the University to recruit, hire, train, promote and educate persons without regard to age, disability, gender, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation or veteran status.