The incumbent reports directly to the Associate Chief, Clinical Pharmacy Services, or their designee. The incumbent is accountable to the Chief of Pharmacy Service, or their designee, for professional licensure and competency. However, daily activities should require minimal supervision, and problems should be managed independently. The incumbent uses initiative in planning and carrying out work requirements according to established scope of practice and care coordination agreement.
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: (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. 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 Full Performance Level Applicants must be License at this level Experience. In addition to the GS-12 requirements, must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. 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. 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: Candidates for the Pact Clinical Pharmacy Practitioner should possess the skills with specific experience in Ambulatory or Primary care setting. Candidates should have recent experience in a current or previous job ( including residency training) that includes direct patient care and comprehensive medication management responsibilities. Preferred candidates will have combination of the following, PGY1 residency, PGY2 specialty residency, and board certifications (BPS), or equivalent training experience, providing direct patient care as a pharmacist provider current and former VA HPT (residents) are eligible to Apply. 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 in the range of GS 13. Physical Requirements: Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.
VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn_ickNBEws Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Clinical - Direct Patient Care Activities: 1) Functions as an advanced practice provider for CMM services to achieve defined outcomes through direct interactions with patients and providers in assigned care area(s) as outlined in VHA Handbook 1108.11, Clinical Pharmacy Services. 2) Functions independently at the highest level to design, implement, and monitor therapeutic drug plans to achieve definite outcomes through direct interactions with patients and providers in assigned areas, but is not limited to: a. Prescribes, monitors and adjusts medications related to disease management within the PACT setting (e.g. Diabetes Mellitus, Hypertension, Hyperlipidemia, Heart Failure, etc.) b. Obtains pertinent medical history and obtains accurate medication related history via patient interview and chart review c. Orders, subsequent review and action on appropriate laboratory tests and other diagnostic studies necessary to monitor, support, and modify the patient's drug therapy. d. 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. e. Provides patient and/or caregiver instructions and education. f. Uses available population health tools to identify and address uncontrolled disease state(s) and/or suboptimal drug therapy. g. Orders consults (i.e., dietician, social work, specialty provider), as appropriate, to maximize positive drug therapy outcomes. h. Ensures referral of complex or unstable patients to higher level care, when needed i. Address other care needs and refers patients to other services for other needed care, as deemed appropriate (e.g., Diabetes Education, weight management,??????? mental health, pain management, etc.) Clinical - Indirect Patient Care Activities 1) 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. 2) Monitors and reports drug errors, adverse drug reactions, allergies, and patient compliance issues. Documents findings per facility procedures and in accordance with the VAADERS Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR) reporting program 3) Reviews relevant population management dashboards to identify patients who may benefit from engagement in care for optimization of medication regimens to achieve improved disease state management and/or reduce medication-related adverse effects. 4) Applies knowledge to interpret laboratory values in the evaluation of patient care, recognizes significant abnormalities, and makes dose adjustments or recommendations based on objective laboratory findings 5) Assists the Pharmacy and Therapeutics (P&T) committee with medication use evaluations and other safety initiatives, as needed. Work Schedule: Hours Vary based service Needs Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade). Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience. Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Ad-Hoc Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 60558F Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized