This position is located at a Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) of the Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center. The pharmacist may provide occasional coverage at other CBOCs or the Saginaw facility as needed. The Clinical Pharmacy Specialist (CPS) has prescribing privileges as outlined in the individual's Scope of Practice. The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series. For more information, refer to Required Documents below
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. Education: (1) 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.) (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. For grade levels above the GS-11, the candidate must be licensed. 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). English Language Proficiency. Pharmacists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d) Grade Determinations: GS-13: Clinical Pharmacy Specialist: The clinical pharmacy specialist (CPS) functions at the highest level of clinical practice, works independently under their scope of practice as defined by the individual medical center to directly care for patients. A CPS plays a defined role in budgetary execution and serves as a mid-level provider who functions to initiate, modify or discontinue medication therapy and as a consultant for intensive medication therapy management services. This includes, but is not limited to, the following: designing, implementing, assessing, monitoring and documenting therapeutic plans utilizing the most effective, least toxic and most economical medication treatments; helping achieve positive patient centric outcomes through direct and indirect interactions with patients, providers, and interdisciplinary teams in assigned areas; performing physical assessments; and ordering laboratory and other tests to help determine efficacy and toxicity of medication therapy. 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: Experience in Pain Management Experience as a scoped provider Completion of a Pharmacy residency Program Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13. Physical Requirements: This position requires frequent extension of the hand(s) and arm(s) in any direction including above or below shoulder level, including retrieval of needed equipment and supplies. Standing: This position frequently requires the maintenance of an upright position to perform duties such as those associated with patient care. Walking: This position requires frequent moving about on foot to accomplish tasks, such as delivering mail. Lifting: This position requires occasional raising of objects from a lower position to a higher position or the movement of objects horizontally position to position. Lifting may be done in the movement of equipment or supplies. Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 25 pounds of force frequently to move objects. Fingering/hands: This position requires constant writing or otherwise working with fingers and/or hands, including one or both hands to include duties such as entering information into the computer, etc. Talking: This position requires constant expression of ideas by means of the spoken word, including the provision of information to internal and external contacts, and the sharing of information with co-workers. Hearing: This position requires constant perception of sounds at normal range, including the reception of oral communication both in person and over the phone. Repetitive motions: This position requires constant substantial movements (motion) of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers, as is done when entering information into the computer. Vision: This position requires constant ability to see near and far, requires depth perception and the ability to distinguish between basic colors and shades of colors when reading computer monitors, etc.
Duties include but are not limited to: Prescribes, monitors and adjusts medications related to pain management Obtains pertinent medical history and obtains accurate pain medication related history from patient and via chart review Orders, monitors, and interprets toxicology screens and other needed labs; implements follow-up on treatment actions as supported by lab interpretations Performs rating scales on pain control, symptoms and functional status Queries and documents PDMP findings Provides overdose education and prescribes naloxone when needed Provides patient and/or caregiver instructions and education Uses available population health tools to identify and address risk mitigation needs focused on safe pain care Performs suicide risk assessment Screens for substance use disorders when indicated, performs brief interventions when indicated, including addressing aberrant behaviors Ensures referral of complex or unstable patients to higher level care, when needed Address other care needs and refers patients to other services for other needed care, as deemed appropriate (e.g., mental health/PC Behavioral Health, physical therapy, yoga, etc.) Communicates with team for next steps and coordination of care, when necessary Performs limited external physical assessment and performs medication reconciliation in alignment with established policies or procedures In addition to pain management, provides CMM for complex patients with chronic diseases including, but not limited to, alcohol misuse/use disorder and tobacco misuse/use disorder; orders and interprets labs or other needed tests pertinent to CMM and makes needed referrals. May also treat other co-morbid conditions (in alignment with scope of practice). Determines if a referral to a physician is necessary when disease progression occurs, or adverse drug events require a higher level of treatment intervention Accepts urgent or same day patient visits including, but not limited to, patient medication review for polypharmacy, recent hospital or emergency department discharges, and co-managed care patients. Follows up via face-to-face, telehealth, eConsult, telephone, secure messaging and other modalities to provide patient care Work Schedule: Monday- Friday 8:00am-4:30pm Telework: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 916800 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized