Duties

Summary

As a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, s/he will function a the highest level of clinical practice, working independently under his/her scope of practice as defined by the medical center to directly care for patients followed in the Infectious Disease and/or Hepatology Clinics and to other areas of the medical center as assigned. This clinical pharmacy specialist plays a defined role in budgetary execution and serves as a consultant for intensive medication therapy management services.

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Responsibilities

Major duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

CLINICAL FUNCTIONS:

• Coordinates all clinical pharmacy functions for Infectious Disease and Hepatology activities, helping to achieve positive patient centric outcomes through direct and indirect interactions with patients, providers, and interdisciplinary teams. Attends and participates in multidisciplinary rounds, team meetings, conferences, and other meetings as required for the purpose of designing, implementing, assessing, monitoring and documenting therapeutic plans utilizing the most effective, least toxic, and most economical medication treatment.
• Designs, implements, assesses, monitors and documents therapeutic plans utilizing the most effective, least toxic, and most economical medication treatment for patients consulted to his/her care and other clinics as designated by supervisor.
• Works independently and effectively to assure appropriate, accurate drug reviews, and interprets prescriptions and/or physician orders for accuracy, eligibility, availability, and cost effectiveness and therapeutic appropriateness; reviews patient medication profiles, contacts physicians and makes authorized changes in orders or prescriptions as required.
• Functions independently in day-to-day clinical and administrative duties associated with the position, consulting with higher level supervisors only when required. In general, uses a high degree of appropriate professional judgment to solve complex problems which routinely arise throughout the work day.
• Demonstrates recognized expertise in the area of infectious disease, HIV, and hepatology and other programs as related to those services.
• Monitors and assesses the outcome of drug therapies with advanced skill, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic procedures. Works closely with physicians and nurses to monitor patient response to medications-including efficacy, safety, and outcome, with special attention to drugs used in the treatment of infectious disease. S/He submits summary data or documents a significant impact of interventions on pharmaceutical care (costs, patient compliance, reduction in morbidity/mortality, selection of formulary products, reduction in numbers of medications) as requested by pharmacy supervisor.

EDUCATIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• Demonstrates knowledge of the standards related to Hospital, Home Care, and Ambulatory Care drug use. This includes, but is not limited to, the standards established by DEA, FDA, VA, the state, and The Joint Commission.
• Serves as an authority on drug usage, interactions, over dosages, and compliance to medical staff, nursing staff, technicians, aides, students, and pharmacists of lower grade.
• Keeps abreast of changes in the Pharmacy Service (i.e. formulary additions and deletions, interdepartmental memoranda, relevant station memoranda, and policies and procedures) and to maintain a general knowledge of VA, DEA and The Joint Commission regulations.
• Serves as a clinical pharmacy preceptor for Doctor of Pharmacy students from the appropriate affiliated Schools/Colleges of Pharmacy. Serves as a preceptor for PharmD residents.
• Provides annual in-services to the selected house staff on infectious disease-related topics.
• Contributes to pharmacy newsletters and other written educational written educational materials as assigned.

ADMINISTRATIVE FUNCTIONS:

• Assumes complete responsibility for Infectious Disease/Hepatology pharmacy quality assurance audits, and gathers data for or performs drug use evaluations to assess and improve the quality of patient care for the P&T Committee.
• Gathers data for administrative reports when assigned. Upon request, independently prepares reports or participates in pharmacy projects. Assists in preparing for special accreditations and reviews (e.g. The Joint Commission, Inspector General, etc,) and meets with reviewing/inspecting officials and pharmacy management.

RESEARCH:

• Demonstrates knowledge of the design, conduct, and interpretation of controlled clinical drug trials or other research related to infectious disease as applicable.
• Participates in developing criteria for drug utilization evaluations, data collection, trending reports, and other quality assurance activities as required ensuring appropriate and safe drug utilization.
• In cooperation with clinical section staff and other health professionals, collects and analyzes data related to ongoing clinical programs and presents it either at national meetings or publishes it in professionally representative publications.
• Serves as preceptor of residents' research projects as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 7:45am-4:20pm
Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Travel Required

Not required

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
None

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to a background/security investigation
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/22/2021.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS

U.S. citizenship. Non-citizens may 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. (NOTE: Prior to 2005 ACPE accredited both baccalaureate and Doctor of Pharmacy terminal degree program. Today the sole degree is Doctor of Pharmacy). TRANSCRIPTS MUST BE SUBMITTED WITH APPLICATION

(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). YOU MUST SUBMIT A COPY OF FPGEE AND TOEFL WITH YOUR APPLICATION

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 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. YOU MUST SUBMIT A COPY OF CURRENT LICENSE WITH THE APPLICATION PACKAGE.

Creditable Experience. Knowledge of Professional Pharmacy Practices. To be creditable, the experience must have demonstrated the use of knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with professional pharmacy practice. Professional practice means paid/non-paid employment as a professional or unlicensed graduate pharmacist as defined by the appropriate licensing board.

Residency and Fellowship Training. Residency and fellowship training programs in a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice may be substituted for creditable experience on a year-for-year basis. The pharmacy residency program must be accredited by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP). A fellowship program that is not accredited by the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) will need to have comparable standards for experience to be creditable (Professional Standards Board refers to the Deputy Chief Consultant for Professional Practice for the determination).

Quality of Experience. Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to pharmacy experience at the next lower level. Experience as a Graduate Pharmacist is creditable provided the candidate was used as a professional pharmacist (under supervision) and subsequently passed the appropriate licensure examination.

Part-time Experience. Part-time experience as a professional pharmacist is credited according to its relationship to the full-time workweek. For example, a pharmacist employed 20 hours a week, or on a 1/2-time basis, would receive 1 full-time workweek of credit for each 2 weeks of service.

Preferred Experience: Must have completed a PGY1 pharmacy residency or have equivalent experience.

Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment stated above, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

(a) Experience or Education. In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must meet one of the following:

1. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS12)

or

2. Completion of an ACPE-accredited Pharm.D. program.

(b) Assignments. 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. This position reports directly to the Associate Chief, Pharmacy, Primary Care Services.Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs):

Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisions.

Expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards pertaining 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.

References: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G15, dated June 7, 2012, VA Pharmacist Qualification Standards, GS-660. This can be found in the local Human Resources Office.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13.

Physical Requirements: This position requires visual acuity (depth perception and ability to distinguish basic colors and shades of colors), near vision correctable at 13 to 16, and far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and 20/40 in the other and keen hearing. This position requires potentially long periods standing (6 hours). The incumbent may be required to do light lifting and carrying of up to 15 pounds; reaching above shoulders. Both hands and legs are required along with the use of all fingers; hearing (aid permitted); repetitive computer use.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/ . If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html .

Additional information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

If you are unable to apply online view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application .

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, résumé, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Other

Drug test required
Yes

Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

Trust determination process
Suitability/Fitness

Required Documents

To apply for this position, you are required to provide a complete Application Package which includes:

• License
• vha-10-2850c
• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Resume Reminder: Your resume must include the following for each job listed:
1) Job title and grade level/salary. In order to show that you meet time-in-grade, you must document grades you have held and how long you have held them;
2) Duties (you must include enough detailed information to support your specialized experience);
3) Month and year start/end dates (e.g. 04/2007 to 04/2008);
4) Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week);
5) Supervisor's contact information and whether or not the supervisor can be contacted.
6) Please be aware that your answers will be verified against information provided on your resume. Be sure that your resume clearly supports your responses to all of the questions by addressing your work experience in detail. Recommended: Even though we do not require a specific resume format, your resume must be clear so that we are able to fully evaluate your qualifications. To ensure you receive appropriate consideration, please list the duties you performed under each individual job title. If we are unable to match your experiences with the positions held, you may lose consideration for this vacancy. We cannot make assumptions regarding your qualifications.

Recommended: Even though we do not require a specific resume format, your resume must be clear so that we are able to fully evaluate your qualifications. To ensure you receive appropriate consideration, please list the duties you performed under each individual job title. If we are unable to match your experiences with the positions held, you may lose consideration for this vacancy. We cannot make assumptions regarding your qualifications.
VA Form 10-2850c Application for Associated Health Occupations can be found at: http://www.va.gov/vaforms/search_action.asp?FormNo=2850&tkey=&Action=Search .

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please use this checklist to ensure you have included all documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), etc.

• Cover Letter
• License
• vha-10-2850c
• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Veterans' Preference: When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit http://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/vetpref/index.aspx .

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.