This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific individual eligibility requirements in accordance with VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) and eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after complete review of the EDRP application.

Duties

The Pharmacy Technician provides a broad range of professional and clinical pharmacy services in a geographically vast health care system. The primary functions of the incumbent include but are not limited to providing telephonic logistical support, troubleshooting pharmacy automation equipment/software, controlled substance accountability, aiding the procurement technician team with projection of inventory of specialty medications, inputting medication and allergy histories under the supervision of a registered Pharmacist, as well as other administrative duties as needed by pharmacy operations. This position requires a thorough knowledge of automated dispensing cabinets, compounding and packaging technologies, inpatient pharmacy admixture process, and policies related to the Inpatient Pharmacy. Major duties will include, but will not be limited to: a. Accurately fills medications, supplies, vaccines, etc. in accordance with current state and federal laws/regulations, local and facility policies. b. Ensures prescriptions are checked and verified by a pharmacist before dispensing to the patient. This includes selecting the correct medication or supply item and dosage form, accurately counting or measuring the quantity to be dispensed, reconstituting, labeling the medication with a barcode, affixing the appropriate auxiliary labels, and completing all necessary documentation per policies and procedures, including making appropriate entries on the pharmacy record and decrementing in the Electronic Health Record (EHR) for proper inventory management. Potential problems are brought to the attention of a pharmacist and reported to by the supervisor for review in an accurate and timely manner. c. Repackages medications from bulk containers into unit-doses according to policies and procedures, whether manually or by using automated equipment, if available. All necessary information (e.g. manufacturer, lot number, expiration date, etc.) is documented and provided on each label. Bulk liquid medications are accurately repackaged into specified unit-dose volumes and quantities using various containers, typically oral syringes, vials, or cups. d. Repackaging of all unit-doses is completed in a timely and accurate manner, and each repackaged unit is reviewed for accuracy and completeness (e.g. empty package, crushed tablets, multiple quantities, no air bubbles in syringe, etc.) prior to pharmacist verification. Appropriate barcodes and auxiliary or warning labels are placed on the prepared packages, as needed. In the outpatient setting, opened bulk liquid controlled substances are transferred into containers with a measuring scale. e. Prepares and dispenses sterile and non-sterile compounding medications and chemotherapeutic agents according to policies and procedures. f. Prepares and dispenses unit-dose medications which includes but not limited to accurately filling patient cassettes, returning unused medications to stock, maintaining adequate unit-dose stocks, replenishing emergency carts, and double checks carts as directed by Pharmacy Supervisor or designee. g. Prepares and fills inpatient orders and requests for controlled substances. Transfers controlled substances to/from the inpatient pharmacy and outpatient pharmacy when applicable and to all inpatient and outpatient clinic controlled substance dispensing cabinets on a regular basis to assure that an adequate working stock is maintained in each area. Work Schedule:Monday to Friday, 7:00am to 3:30pm, with rotating weekends, variable schedule based on the needs of the service. Telework: Not Authorized Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Contact [email protected], the EDRP Coordinators for questions/assistance. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

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 or Experience. Applicant must have a high school diploma or equivalent and or at least 3 months experience. Certification. Certification by the National Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) is required at grades GS-6 and above. NOTE: You must submit a copy of your current, valid, and unrestricted Pharmacy Technician Certification. English Language Proficiency. Pharmacy technicians appointed to direct patient care positions must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with chapter 2, section D, paragraph 5a, this part. GRADE REQUIREMENTS In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: Pharmacy Technician, GS-7 Experience. One year experience at the next lower level and must fully meet the KSAs at the next lower level. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following technical KSAs and the potential to acquire the assignment specific KSAs designated by an asterisk (*): Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. *(a) Ability to evaluate, analyze workflow, and coordinate work activities. (b) Ability to independently gather, evaluate, and analyze data to generate reports and/or for other projects/statistical purposes. (c) Knowledge of pharmacy policies and procedures sufficient to train and orient new employees and other staff (d) Comprehensive knowledge of the operation and care of specialized pharmaceutical equipment. (e) Comprehensive knowledge of the procurement and formulary process. (f) Comprehensive knowledge of investigational drug policies and procedures. (g) Comprehensive knowledge of controlled substance policies and procedures, and the ability to identify and investigate discrepancies in these policies and procedures. (h) Comprehensive knowledge of, and ability to, analyze data in VA information systems. Preferred Experience: Hospital Pharmacy, Acute Care, Inpatient experience preferred References: VA Handbook 5005/15 Part II, Appendix G28 This position is above the full performace level Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019

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.

Contacts

• Address VA Portland Health Care System 3710 Southwest US Veterans Hospital Road Portland, OR 97239 US
• Name: Laurie Johnson
• Phone: (503) 220-8262 X51488
• Email: [email protected]