Description
Summary The Clinical Pharmacy Specialist (CPS) functions at the highest level of clinical practice, and works independently under their scope of practice as defined by the individual medical center to directly care for patients in the inpatient or outpatient mental health setting. Responsibilities VA Careers - Pharmacy: \_ickNBEws Provides pharmaceutical services to focus on therapeutic drug monitoring. Analyzes medication regimens to ensure the most effective, least toxic, and most economical treatment plan. Understands and applies the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic differences in various populations. Evaluates a wide variety of patients in assigned patient care areas. Designs, recommends, and implements pharmacotherapeutic regimens and corresponding monitoring plans. Participates in quality assurance and medication use evaluation programs, and serves as a representative of the Pharmacy Service on assigned committees and subcommittees. Participates and contributes to educational programs (i.e. providing in-services/staff education, serves as a preceptor for pharmacy residents and students). Participates and contributes to clinical research activities. Assesses, designs, initiates, modifies, and monitors therapeutic drug plans to achieve patient centric outcomes through direct and indirect interactions with patients and providers. Develops and manages all pharmacy educational programs pertaining to the advancement of appropriate pharmacological therapy which includes but is not limited to medical and pharmacy residency training programs, fellowships, clerkships, internships, management training programs, staff development programs, university affiliated programs, and interdisciplinary training programs. Works with physicians to develop protocols for medical and administrative research related to pharmacological therapy and clinical outcomes. Reviews all medication orders for appropriateness, drug selection, dosage, route of administration and the amount, prior to dispensing. Collaborates with pharmacy supervisors, leadership, and staff to develop processes for more efficient prescription processing and formulary management within pharmacy service and specialty areas of practice. Interacts with patients, visitors, staff, volunteers and student/resident trainees in a respectful, helpful, cooperative and compassionate manner. Provides patient care/support that is appropriate to the cognitive, physical and emotional needs of the patient group served. Follows applicable regulations and instructions regarding access to computerized files, release of access codes, etc. Work Schedule: Rotating Schedule Telework: May be eligible at management's discretion. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required 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 examination. 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. 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. 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: 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 60; phone: , or through their Web site at: (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. Grade Requirement: a. 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. b. Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment above, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates: GS-12 requirement must be met in addition to the GS-13 requirements for this position. Experience or Education. In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must meet one of the following: One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, OR Completion of an ACPE-accredited Pharm.D. program. Additionally, Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs): Knowledge of professional pharmacy practice. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to both patients and health care staff. Knowledge of laws, regulations, and accreditation standards related to the distribution and control of scheduled and non-scheduled drugs and pharmacy security. Skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters GS-13 Experience: In addition to the GS-12 requirements above, must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. 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: Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisions Expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for their program area..... click apply for full job details
