This Pharmacist (Clinical Pharmacy Specialist) is in Geriatrics and Extended Care services within the White River Junction VA Health Care System located at White River Junction, Vermont.
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: 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.) Graduates of foreign pharmacy degree programs meet the educational requirement if the 2 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. 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 Experience. In addition to the GS-12 requirements, must have one (1) year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. AND Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience above Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following KSAs: Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisions. Expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for their program area. Ability to solve problems, coordinate and organize responsibilities to maximize outcomes in their program area or area of clinical expertise. Expert knowledge of a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice or specialty area of pharmacy. Advanced skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters. Pharmacists should also demonstrate the following GS-12 Full Performance Level KSAs: 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. Assignments. Candidates at this grade level are to be in one of the assignments listed below. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher level duties must consist of significant scope, administrative independence, complexity (difficulty) and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Preferred Experience: Experience in a home-based care setting. Experience with Comprehensive Medication Management as a Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner (CPP) Residency in geriatrics or experience managing geriatric patients. Demonstrated ability to manage patients with complex care needs, particularly in rural areas. 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. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-13. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.
VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn_ickNBEws The Clinical Pharmacy Specialist (CPS) functions at the highest level of clinical practice, works independently under their individual scope of practice to directly care for patients. A CPS functions as a member of their assigned team and serves as an advanced practice provider 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. Duties include but are not limited to: Customer Service: Treats patient, team members, other facility employees and visitors with respect. Responds to the needs of the Veteran and staff in a courteous and timely manner. Demonstrates interpersonal skills to achieve the goals of the service. Acts as a team member and is supportive of the group's efforts at all times. Demonstrates an ability to work under a variety of circumstances to maximize group productivity and quality. Clinical - Direct Patient Care Activities that require a scope of practice: Core functions include patient care encounters (e.g. face to face and virtual) with referred patients, for comprehensive medication management in practice areas identified in their individual scope of practice. Functions as a mid-level provider to design, implement, and monitor therapeutic drug plans to achieve definite outcomes through direct interactions with patients and providers in assigned areas. Orders, performs, reviews, and analyzes appropriate laboratory tests and other diagnostic studies necessary to monitor and support the patient's drug therapy. Follows-up with patients on lab or test results to discuss the plan of therapy, i.e. changes in medication therapy, monitoring, and additional testing requirements. Determines if a referral to a higher level of care is necessary when treatment interventions fall outside of the CPS scope of practice. Clinical - Indirect Patient Care Activities: Identify patients who may benefit from comprehensive medication management through population management reports and during team huddles. Review patient medication regimens for clinical effectiveness, drug selection, dosing, contraindications, side effects, potential drug interactions, and therapeutic outcomes as required. Communicates findings with prescribers and provides appropriate alternatives to current treatment plans as needed. Monitor and report drug errors, adverse drug reactions, allergies, and patient compliance issues. Promotes and monitors compliance for established drug therapy policies. Works with providers to ensure compliance with national, VISN, and local initiatives. Education and Research: Participates in the training and in-servicing of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmacy students, pharmacy residents, and other staff on assigned teams. Serves as preceptor for pharmacy students and pharmacy residents in accordance with established policies. Drug Information: Serves as an authority on drug usage, interactions, over-dosages, and compliance, to medical staff, nursing staff, technicians and students. Uses appropriate references to research drug information. Provides timely and accurate responses to drug information inquiries from all customers. Effectively instructs on appropriate use of medications and medical devices. Performs additional duties as required. Work Schedule: Full-Time, Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm Telework: Ad-hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: F04841 at GS-13 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Notifications: This position is in the Excepted Service. This position is not a Bargaining Unit position. This position is covered by a special rate. Narrative responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) will be required from the selectee to proceed with the appointment. Current or Former Federal Employees must submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action). The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure, and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held. Selectee will be required to complete additional forms to proceed with employment process.