Family Medicine Physician – Clinical Faculty

Santa Cruz Community Health (SCCH) is a multi-site, Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) serving Santa Cruz County residents. SCCH began as a women's health collective in 1974 with the mission to improve the health of our patients and the community and advocate the feminist goals of social, political, and economic equality. Now, more than 50 years later, we serve that same mission at our three clinic sites: the Santa Cruz Women's Health Center in downtown Santa Cruz serves women and children; the Live Oak Health Center offers the community an integrated, state-of-the-art health and housing campus in Live Oak, and the Santa Cruz Mountain Health Center provides accessible and expanded access to care for our patients in the San Lorenzo Valley.

Driven by our commitment to health care as a human right, SCCH is a leading non-profit provider offering comprehensive health services to our patients, regardless of their ability to pay. We have been recognized in the community as a leader in delivering high-quality, innovative care, and we are active in local, state, and national advocacy work that empowers our patients and community to be healthy, happy, and successful.  

SCCH has a diverse patient population and an engaging and friendly work environment. Our caring and committed staff works as a team to fulfill our mission so that all our patients have access to quality, whole-person health care.  

POSITION SUMMARY/SCOPE:

Family Medicine Physicians at Santa Cruz Community Health (SCCH) provide comprehensive family medicine services, including preventive care, chronic disease management, pediatric care, reproductive health services, mental health and substance use treatment, in-office procedures, and same-day/acute care services, to a Santa Cruz County patient population rich in socioeconomic, gender, racial, and ethnic diversity. SCCH is committed to shaping a medical staff that reflects its patient population; bilingual English/Spanish is strongly preferred. 

SCCH physicians work alongside other medical providers, including nurse practitioners, physician assistants, registered nurses, medical assistants, mental health providers, chiropractors, Chinese medicine providers, and case managers in an integrated Care Team model. Physicians are clinical leaders of their Care Teams and act as supervising physicians for advanced practice providers. Physicians meet regularly with their supervising Site Medical Director and the larger medical department to further their clinical knowledge and skill, discuss patient cases, review performance dashboards, and improve quality and clinical processes. 

The new Morehouse School of Medicine Dominical Hospital Family Medicine Residency Program started in Santa Cruz in July 2024, and SCCH serves as the residents’ continuity clinic, procedure clinic, and osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) clinic. SCCH family physicians serve in the role of clinical faculty for the residency program as they teach and precept residents in continuity clinic 1-4 shifts per week. As clinical faculty, they meet monthly with the precepting team to participate in shared learning and support, can seek a faculty appointment with Morehouse School of Medicine, may mentor resident physicians with longitudinal Quality Improvement Projects, and may teach didactics. The remainder of their time is spent seeing their own patients as a primary care provider.  

SCCH family medicine physicians may also teach students, and they make themselves available to respond to clinical questions from other care team providers including Advanced Care Providers (APCs) and Registered Nurses (RNs). As supervising physicians on their care teams, SCCH family physicians provide consultation visits to other care team providers’ patients when requested and assume care of APCs’ patients or transfer of care to APCs depending on patient complexity, provider scope of practice, level of education, and experience. They also champion efforts to improve clinical quality measures of the care team’s panel, as directed by the Quality Improvement (QI team) and participate in other care team providers’ clinical supervision and development including annual performance evaluation and quarterly peer review. 

Most medical providers conduct some patient care remotely, usually from home, via telephone or video. 80% of an SCCH physician’s time is spent providing direct patient care, while 20% of their time is allotted for clinical “administrative” time. All medical visits are 20 minutes in length, and physicians are expected to see nine patients per 4-hour shift unless precepting resident physicians. SCCH uses OCHIN Epic Electronic Health Record system for visit documentation, e-prescribing, and data collection for reporting on clinical quality. 

Classification: Full-time or Part-time, Exempt, Salary

Reports to: Site Medical Director

Location: Live Oak Health Center, Santa Cruz

Hours: Varies; at least one evening per week and some Saturday morning shifts

Compensation: $212,232 – $277,305 per year, DOE

Language: Bilingual English/Spanish highly desirable

QUALIFICATIONS

• Must be a Board-Certified family physician licensed and in good standing in the State of California.
• Professional experience in community health centers or public health preferred
• Clinical experience in mental health, chronic pain, and chronic disease management preferred
• Commitment to preventive care, quality improvement, and empowering patients to make informed health care decisions.
• Ability to work cooperatively with other staff in a Care Team model
• Commitment to the stated mission of Santa Cruz Community Health and the diverse needs of our patient population.
• Ability to work at least one evening per week. Providers are required to work up to 6 Saturday clinics per year. There are no call duties for this position.
• Bilingual conversant/fluent in English and Spanish highly desirable.

BENEFITS

We offer a robust benefits package designed to support your well-being and work-life balance! Enjoy competitive compensation and a comprehensive benefits suite for those working 20 hours per week, including employer-subsidized health, dental, vision, and life insurance plans, plus optional pet insurance and supplemental coverage; coverage kicks in the first of the month after 30 days of employment. From day one, you'll accrue paid time off, have paid holidays, and a 2% automatic 401K enrollment with a 2% company match. 80% of a clinician's time is clinical and 20% is administrative. You'll also benefit from access to a wellness reimbursement program, a telecommuting stipend when applicable, plus, we cover license and certification fees and CME (fees and days off). Celebrate with us at monthly staff events and bi-annual company-wide celebrations and take advantage of ongoing training opportunities.

SANTA CRUZ COMMUNITY HEALTH IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER (W/M/V/D)