The incumbent is responsible for providing optimal clinical and pharmaceutical care activities in accordance with the department's mission, vision and goals. The incumbents primary responsibility is the utilization of evidence based pharmaceutical care services through direct interactions with patients and providers as well as the safe provision of pharmaceuticals and medication information in a timely manner.
Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. English Language Proficiency: Pharmacists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d). Education: Graduate of an Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) accredited College or School of Pharmacy with a baccalaureate degree in pharmacy (BS Pharmacy) and/or a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree. Verification of approved degree programs may be obtained from the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, 20 North Clark Street, Suite 2500, Chicago, Illinois 60602-5109; phone: (312) 664-3575, or through their Web site at: http://www.acpe-accredit.org/.(NOTE: Prior to 2005 ACPE accredited both baccalaureate and Doctor of Pharmacy terminal degree program. Today the sole degree is Doctor of Pharmacy.) School transcripts must be submitted with your application. OR Graduates of foreign pharmacy degree programs meet the educational requirement if the graduate is able to provide proof of achieving the Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Examination Commission (FPGEC) Certification, which includes passing the Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Equivalency Examination (FPGEE) and the Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test (TOEFL iBT). A copy of the FPGEC certificate must be submitted. Licensure: Full, current and unrestricted license to practice pharmacy in a State, Territory, Commonwealth of the United States (i.e., Puerto Rico), or the District of Columbia. The pharmacist must maintain current registration if this is a requirement for maintaining full, current, and unrestricted licensure. A pharmacist who has, or has ever had, any license(s) revoked, suspended, denied, restricted, limited, or issued/placed in a probationary status may be appointed only in accordance with the provisions in VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, section B, paragraph 16. An active copy of unrestricted license to practice pharmacy must be submitted. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Grade Determinations: GS-12 Clinical Pharmacist Experience or Education: In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must meet one of the following 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, or Completion of an ACPE-accredited Pharm.D. program. Assignment: A pharmacist in this assignment handles routine medication-related activities in accordance with local, Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN), and national policies and regulations. These include, but are not limited to: reviewing, interpreting, and verifying medication orders for appropriateness; processing and filling medication orders; interacting with and making recommendations to other clinical staff regarding medication therapy ordered to ensure safe and effective care; reviewing the patient's medications, allergies, labs, and other pertinent information from the medical record to identify and solve medication-related problems; contacting providers as appropriate; documenting recommendations and interventions; providing refill extensions and partial medication supplies; taking health and medication histories; performing medication reconciliation; providing drug information; assisting in formulary management including therapeutic substitutions, nonformulary reviews and medication usage evaluations; documenting and assessing adverse drug events (ADEs); assisting in medical emergencies; providing oversight of technical staff in all aspects of medication distribution. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following knowledge, skills and abilities Knowledge of professional pharmacy practice. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to both patients and health care staff. Knowledge of laws, regulations, and accreditation standards related to the distribution and control of scheduled and non-scheduled drugs and pharmacy security. Skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. Physical Requirements: This is a primarily sedentary position.
Major Duties: Professionally receives and handles escalated telephone calls from and responds to veterans, their family members and/or legal representatives regarding a broad range of topics, including: appropriate use of medications and medical devices, basic billing inquiries, clinical questions, medication refills/renewals, drug-drug interactions, adverse effects, food-drug interactions,product availability, and pharmacy policies as appropriate. Monitors provider's orders for appropriateness of therapy and reports drug errors, adverse drug reactions, allergies, incompatibilities, side effects and patient compliance issues and appropriately interacts with the ordering provider or attending as needed Actively reviews patient medication regimens for cost effective drug selection, dosing,contraindications, therapeutic duplication, appropriate route and method of administration, drug interactions, and therapeutic outcomesas required. Utilizes patient care information systems such as VistA and CPRS to obtain critical patient data elements and to document clinical interventions and other pertinent patient care issues in a timely and professional manner. Manages recalls and medication shortage situations by substituting alternate dosage strengths or products per facility policy. Enters supply orders appropriate for patient per VISN CCC policy. Manages various actions, as appropriate, for medication orders to include flagging prescriptions,managing view alerts, using the "hold" function, and generating unsigned discontinued orders using the "service reject" function. Reviews prescription renewal verification requests and takes appropriate action to extend refills until the next scheduled appointment under the provider's name per VISN CCC policy. Obtains medication histories from patients and summarizes significant findings in the medical record. Performs medication reconciliation at all transitions of care, including updating the medication profile to reflect an accurate active list of VA and non-VA medications. Applies knowledge of normal laboratory values in the evaluation of patient care and recognizes significant abnormalities. Reviews and evaluates requests for non-formulary and restricted drugs for appropriateness and compliance with established criteria where applicable. Supports the goal of processing all medication requests in a timely manner by meeting VISN CCC standards. Processes secure messages appropriately and in a timely manner as assigned. Maintains professional competency, licensure, therapeutics and disease management and continuing education requirements. Has a working knowledge of information resources. Participated in continuous process improvement. Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Shifts may vary but will be scheduled 7 on 7 off during WHEN (Weekends, Holidays, Evenings, and Nights). Remote: This is a fully remote position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized