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

VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn_ickNBEws Major Duties: Serves as a clinical pharmacy specialist and consultant to the Chief of Pharmacy Service for medication related issues in the acute care setting, to include critical care units (intensive care and Emergency Department), medical-surgical wards, and the perioperative setting. Clinical Practice 1) Obtains pertinent patient medical history, makes a pharmaceutical care plan for those patients who need pharmaceutical care, and documents the pharmaceutical care plan in the electronic health record. 2) Clinical Pharmacy Specialists in the acute care setting supervise all pharmacotherapy provided by team providers to ensure that National Treatment Guidelines are being followed, in addition to adherence to National Formulary and local policy. 3) Utilizes the highest level of clinical privileges for Clinical Pharmacy Specialists to manage assigned patients. 4) Proactively engages with providers in the design of the veteran's treatment regimen to achieve optimal health outcomes 5) Serves as an authoritative information source on drugs and their utilization in therapy, with special emphasis on medications used in treatment of the assigned patients (e.g., critical care vs general medicine). 6) Quickly recognizes and lists important medical problems, disease states, symptoms, or abnormal laboratory values that may necessitate alterations to the pharmaceutical plan. 7) Orders and reviews appropriate laboratory tests and other diagnostic studies necessary to monitor and support the patient's drug therapy. 8) Orders consults (i.e. dietician, social work) as appropriate to maximize positive drug therapy outcomes. 9) Identifies and assists team providers in managing all drug-induced problems that may be affecting the patient or contributing to a need for hospitalization. This would include drug side effects, allergic reactions, toxicities, improper dosage regimens, non-compliance, etc. 10) Evaluates the risk-benefit ratio of various therapeutic alternatives, develops a therapeutic plan utilizing the most efficacious, least toxic and most economical pharmacological treatment modalities available, and communicates these plans to the team. 11) When assessing or providing patient care the employee will evaluate the impact of the age of the patient as it relates to ability to understand directions, provide objective self-assessment or any other medical milieu appropriate to the overall treatment plan. 12) Assists in discharge planning and ensures continuity of care for patients. 13) Works with patients who have been identified as having compliance/adherence issues with their medications. 14) Maintains certifications for Basic Life Support (BLS) and Advanced Life Support (ALS), as deemed necessary by the medical center Dispensing and Distribution 1) Evaluates and processes providers' orders for patients, clarifying unclear orders with the provider when necessary. 2) Provides quality control analysis for dispensing activities of automated dispensing equipment or pharmacy technicians. Education 3) Educates patients on the proper use and care of their medications through the day-to-day personal interactions with the patients. 4) Provides formal education and training programs in the area of pharmacology, therapeutics, pharmacokinetics and related subjects to physicians, nursing staff and other health care professionals as appropriate. 5) Contributes to Pharmacy Newsletters and other written educational written educational materials as assigned. 6) Participates in P&T Committee functions and assignments as required, e.g., ADR monitoring, medication error reporting, Medication Utilization Evaluation activities, drug monographs/reviews, etc. 7) Attends and actively participates in clinical pharmacy activities, i.e., staff development, residency conferences, journal club. 8) Provides drug information and drug literature evaluations as requested by the professional staff. 9) Prepares and presents educational lectures to a variety of disciplines as required. 10) Provides formal education and clinical education to pharmacists in-training. 11) Serves as a mentor to Pharm.D. students and residents. 12) Assists with formal and informal instruction/orientation to all staff within area of assignment. 13) Provides patient education about medications and related topics when appropriate. RESEARCH 1) 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. 2) Serves as preceptor of residents Work Schedule: Mon-Fri 0630AM-0300PM Telework: Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

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: Citizenship: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Language: 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. NOTE: Individuals who have or have had multiple licenses and had any such license revoked for professional misconduct, professional incompetence or substandard care, or who surrendered such license after receiving written notice of potential termination of such license by the State for professional misconduct, professional incompetence, or substandard care, are not eligible for appointment to the position unless such revoked or surrendered license is fully restored (38 U.S.C. § 7402(f)). Effective November 30, 1999, this is a requirement for employment. This requirement does not apply to licensed pharmacists on VA rolls as of that date, provided they maintain continuous appointment and are not disqualified for employment by any subsequent revocations or voluntary surrenders of State license, registration or certification Grade requirements: Creditable Experience (1) 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. (2) 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). (3) 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. (4) 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. 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. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs): 1. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisions. 2. Expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for their program area. 3. Ability to solve problems, coordinate and organize responsibilities to maximize outcomes in their program area or area of clinical expertise. 4. Expert knowledge of a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice or specialty area of pharmacy. 5. Advanced skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters. Preferred Experience: In addition to the GS-13 requirements, must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. GS-12 Pharmacist (a) Experience, Education, and Licensure. None beyond the basic requirements. (NOTE: See exception to licensure requirement in subparagraph 2c(1) above.) (b) Assignment. Pharmacists at this grade level serve in a developmental capacity. References: VA Handbook 5005/55 Part II Appendix G15 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

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 Washington VA Medical Center 50 Irving Street, Northwest Washington, DC 20422 US
• Name: Alicia Wiggins
• Phone: 410-605-7000 X53781
• Email: [email protected]