Pharmacy Technician (Anticoagulation)

Summary

Pharmacy technician, clinical specialist position performs clinical and administrative support for specialized areas of clinical pharmacy practice, primarily anticoagulation and primary care services. Clinical functions include independently taking medication histories and counseling patients while working in collaboration with licensed clinical pharmacist practitioners to support the delivery of timely, patient-centered, evidence-based comprehensive medication management and delivery.

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Overview

• Accepting applications

• Open & closing dates

09/20/2024 to 10/11/2024

• Salary

$59,558 - $77,423 per year

• Pay scale & grade

GS 00 - 8

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Location

1 vacancy in the following location:

• Spokane, WA 1 vacancy

• Remote job

No

• Telework eligible

Yes-as determined by the agency policy. This is NOT a remote telework position. Candidates will need to reside in local VAMC catchment area.

• Travel Required

Not required

• Relocation expenses reimbursed

No

• Appointment type

Permanent

• Work schedule

Full-time

• Service

Excepted

• Promotion potential

None

• Job family (Series)

• 0661 Pharmacy Technician

• Supervisory status

No

• Security clearance

Other

• Drug test

Yes

• Position sensitivity and risk

Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

• Trust determination process

• Credentialing

• Suitability/Fitness

• Financial disclosure

No

• Bargaining unit status

Yes

• Announcement number

CBSV-12551826-24-JM

• Control number

810695600

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This job is open to

• Internal to an agency

Current federal employees of this agency.

• Federal employees

• Competitive service

Current or former competitive service federal employees.

• Federal employees

• Excepted service

Current excepted service federal employees.

Clarification from the agency

The area of consideration will be referred in the following order: 1. Current permanent Mann-Grandstaff VAMC facility employees. 2. Current permanent Agency (Department of Veterans Affairs) employees. 3. Current permanent employees of other Federal agencies.

Help This job is also open in another announcement to:

• The public

Help This job is also open in another announcement to:

• The public

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Duties

Total-Rewards-of-an-Allied-Health-VA-Career-Brochure.pdf

vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Total-Rewards-of-a-Pharmacy-Technician-Career-Flyer.pdf

All duties of the CPhT will be performed under the direct supervision of collaborating licensed Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner (CPP) with oversight from Associate Chief of Pharmacy, Clinical. Work assignments will be conducted independently. Assigned activities may include:

• Completes outreach to Veterans under guidance and supervision of the CPP.

• Participates in patient-facing modes of communication and care delivery.

• Works as a whole health and health equity extender, enhancing CPP productivity, and increasing Veteran, family, and caregiver satisfaction.

• Obtains health history, chief complaint, and completes medication reviews. If information requires clinical decision/adjudication the CPhT must notify the licensed practitioner.

• Completes assigned clinical reminders, preventative health inventory screens, performs medication reviews, places consult and supply orders for practitioner signature.

• CPhT supporting licensed team members may complete clinical reminder screenings only. CPhT are prohibited from completing or satisfying any clinical reminder that require a comprehensive assessment.

• CPhT are prohibited from releasing consults and supply orders without a provider signature.

• CPhT may record/transcribe historical/prior care, including care for the purposes of satisfying a clinical reminder within the electronic health record only when written documentation is available and contains all required information.

• Manages incoming Veteran calls, voicemail and secure messages and addresses action items as appropriate.

• Provides population management support using patient care dashboards to identify patients for potential intervention.

• Collaborates with CPP and Interdisciplinary team (IDT) staff to prepare for future workload.

• Contacts Veterans using approved verbiage and communication methods regarding normal laboratory results.

• Provides support to ensure successful preparation and completion of telehealth encounters.

• Documents medications, treatments, interventions, patient education, phone communication, and all other pertinent data in the patient's Electronic Health Record (EHR).

• Supports licensed practitioners with administrative entering of orders, medical renewal requests, prepares informed consent, or place consults.

• Evaluates INR stability, assesses etiology of INR's out of range and collaborates with the Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner to develop a plan of action.

• Communicates any changes in medications/diet, any evident reason for changes in INR value, and any abnormal laboratory findings to the Clinical Pharmacy Specialist.

• Communicates with other staff any complications of anticoagulation therapy or other problems.

• Supports rescheduling patients who have missed appointments, phone interviews of patients who have obtained INRs from outside labs.

• To support quality management, the CPhT prints weekly schedules and "No Shows/Lost to Follow-Up" reports. All complex problems are brought to the Clinical Pharmacy Practitioners attention.

• Assists Clinical Pharmacist Providers with follow-up patient communication for patients being managed for anticoagulation and other chronic diseases/ conditions managed by CPPs.

• Other duties as assigned by the Clinical Pharmacist Practitioners or Associate Chief or Pharmacy, Clinical.

Work Schedule: Monday Thru Friday 8:00am-4:30pm

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized.

Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized.

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases.

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)

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 #: 000000

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized.

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Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.

• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.

• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.

• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.

• You may be required to serve a probationary period.

• Subject to background/security investigation.

• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.

• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation.

• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

• Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.

Basic Requirements:

• United States Citizenship: 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: Pharmacy Technician candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

• Education or Experience:

• None required.

• For all grade levels and positions that accept both education and experience to qualify, equivalent combinations of qualifying education and experience that total at least 100% are qualifying. The combined percentage is determined by adding total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level to the education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level.

• Certification: For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either:

• 1. Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB), Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT). OR
  
  
• 
  
  2. National Healthcareer Association (NHA), Certified Pharmacy Technician (ExCPT).
  
  

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:

Pharmacy Technician-Clinical Specialist (Anticoagulation) GS-8

Experience: Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level and demonstrate the KSAs below.

Certification: For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either:

PTCB as a CPhT.

OR

NHA as a ExCPT.

• In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs.

• Comprehensive knowledge of concepts, principles, methodology and policies in a specialized area or section of pharmacy (such as sterile compounding, controlled substances, automation, clinical pharmacy, contact center, etc.) Note: See Specialized Area.in the Definitions Section.

• Skill in training and orienting new and existing pharmacy facility employees and students on proper policies and procedures.

• Ability to evaluate, analyze and coordinate workflow and work activities within a specialized area or section of the pharmacy.

Assignments: Pharmacy technicians in this assignment specialize in areas such as sterile compounding, oncology, controlled substances, medication history review, clinical specialist (anticoagulation, pain, infectious diseases), clinical informatics, automation, immunizations and any other specialized area in the advancement of the profession. The pharmacy technician will serve as a subject matter expert and key resource in the day-to-day technician duties of the specialized area. The technician will be performing assignments such as compounding sterile products, filling controlled substance prescriptions while maintaining compliance with Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) regulations, taking medication histories and counseling patients, managing automation, managing workflow and training and orienting staff in the specialized area.

Preferred Experience: Anticoagulation Clinic Experience. Experience supporting direct patient care activities. Cerner/Oracle electronic health record experience.

Former VA Handbook References: PART II APPENDIX G28 EFFECTIVE DATE: November 07, 2023.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-6. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-8.

Physical Requirements: Use of fingers, use of computer equipment and telephone/virtual communication. Environmental factors include working closely with others.

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

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

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.

Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

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• Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new window

Learn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

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, resume, 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.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

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

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.