The Primary Purpose of the Position is: To serve as the Patient Safety Specialist who is organizational responsible to the Patient Safety Manager (PSM) and works closely with Pharmacy Service to provide operational, analytical and evaluative support to the VA North Texas Health Care System clinical staff and appropriate clinical committees.
Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Citizen of the United States. (Noncitizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g, this part.) 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. (Must submit a copy of Transcripts) (NOTE: Prior to 2005 ACPE accredited both baccalaureate and Doctor of Pharmacy terminal degree program. Today the sole degree is Doctor of Pharmacy.) 2. 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). 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. English Language Proficiency: Pharmacists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d). 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-13 Clinical Pharmacy Specialist Experience: In addition to the GS-12 requirements, must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Experience such as: 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 and skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters. Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following KSAs: a. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisions. b. Expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for their program area. c. Ability to solve problems, coordinate and organize responsibilities to maximize outcomes in their program area or area of clinical expertise. d. Expert knowledge of a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice or specialty area of pharmacy. e. Advanced skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters. Preferred Experience: 3 Years of experience in professional pharmacy practice (in-hospital setting or outpatient) Experience in healthcare performance improvement Experience with data analysis and analytical techniques Excellent oral an writing communication skills Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is 13. Physical Requirements: The work is sedentary. Some work may require movement between offices, hospitals, warehouses, and similar areas for meetings and to conduct work. Work may also require walking/standing, in conjunctions with travel to and attendance at meetings and/or conferences away from the work site. Incumbent may carry and lift light items weighing less than 15 pounds
Duties include but not limited to: Performs Medical Center Program Management and Support: Performs tasks and responsibilities directly supporting the Root Cause Analysis process including review, categorization, research, facility feedback and analysis of data contained in cases submitted to the NCPS. Identifies cases suitable for teaching purposes, assists in the development of training materials, facilitates RCAs and provides training support to the patient safety program. Participates in the development, production, and management of cognitive aids, tools, and other training support materials. Maintains a cooperative relationship between Patient Safety, Pharmacy Service, Nursing, Chief of Staff Office and other services such that overall activities and scope of pharmacy services and medication practices are rendered safely. Promotes compliance with the hospital formulary and VHA drug utilization guidelines throughout the Medical Center by sharing of lessons learned from patient safety and Quality Management activities such.as; RCAs, HFMEAs, teleconferences, conferences, patient safety and medical journals. Documents medical error reduction and injury avoidance activities from improvement of medication systems. Report's findings to the PSM, Chief, Pharmacy, Associate Director for Patient Care Services, Chief of Staff and/or Clinical Service Chiefs for review. Provides Quality Improvement and Data Analysis: Conducts preliminary site investigations to obtain baseline data, and then prepares advisory criteria for smaller or less complex issues Explores background information (literature, reports, and discussions with others having specialized knowledge of the issue) and consults with supervisor in evaluating information and in presenting the information in an effective manner. Prepares Executive Case Summaries. Analyzes and evaluates, on a quantitative and qualitative basis, the effectiveness of NCPS program activities and operations in meeting established goals and objectives. Performs Administration Work: Provides support to facility, VISN and NCPS on medication safety research projects, Root Cause Analysis and Healthcare Failure Mode Effect and Analysis (HFMEA). Prepares correspondence, reports, estimates, fact sheets, status reports and schedules as required to complete project assignments. Serve as a key member of and may lead multi-disciplinary project teams related to patient safety with other VA North Texas Health and VHA field staff, and supports key stakeholder meetings and conferences. Assists in monitoring and analyzing changes in mission, goals, new legislation, and technological advances to assess the impact of these changes on work methods/procedures and to participate in the development of new systems which will address these changes. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized