Clarification from the agency

The position is open only to current VA employees. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this occupational series. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

Major Duties include but are not limited to:

Program Management.

1. Prime responsibility for providing pharmaceutical services to the veteran patients served by this medical center and for the professional and administrative activities supporting these services.
2. Establishes short and long range planning objectives for Pharmacy Service consistent with good patient care and with the mission, vision, and values of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the health care system.
3. Establish and updates policies and procedures. Policies and procedures cover the full range of professional, clinical, and administrative pharmacy practices required to meet the scope, variety, and intensity of demands of this health care system. Must comply with federal and state laws, the standards of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and requirements of systematic review programs.
4. Prepares projections and justification for budgetary, personnel, arid space requirements for the service, considering the changing and expanding role of pharmacy and the long-range goals of the health care system.
5. Plans and implements the structure and organization of the service, effectively aligning the types and numbers of authorized positions. Staffing provides 24-hour coverage for inpatient and 10-12 hour coverage for outpatient.
6. Develops new clinical programs, the maintenance of appropriate quality patient care and in providing quality assurance assessments and medication usage evaluation, through performance improvement quality assurance programs.
7. Participates as a member of the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee. Assures the maintenance, distribution and timeliness of formulary of therapeutic and diagnostic agents, selected by the Committee.

Administrative/ Supervision

1. Directly supervises or oversees the supervision of the pharmacy staff, which includes pharmacy supervisors, clinical pharmacy specialists, clinical pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmacy residents & students and administrative support staff.
2. Assures that personnel are scheduled in such a way as to provide consistency of coverage and to accommodate planned leave and promote employee morale. Analyzes work measurement data.
3. Recruits, interviews and selects suitable personnel, in collaboration with Human Resources.
4. Maintains an effective liaison with all professional and administrative disciplines within the health care system. Works cooperatively with other health care system managers. Maintains effective relationships with Veterans Service Officers, Congressional liaisons, and service organizations to resolve problems and improve services.
5. Controls and accounts for all regulated substances in Pharmacy.
6. Provides advice, counsel and instruction to individual supervisors and employees, concerning both work and administrative matters.
7. Serves on Medical Center committees.
8. Establishes, controls, and monitors the inventory levels and turn-over rate of pharmacy supplies. Reviews the distribution of these supplies to patients, nursing units and clinics for their timely distribution and appropriate use. Documents expenditures, buying trends, workload fluctuations and conditions affecting these costs.
9. Develops and documents employee performance. Evaluates work performance of employees under his/her supervision. Provides disciplinary action when necessary. Resolves employee conflicts and complaints.

Education

1. Ensures orientation, training, and continuing education programs are established.
2. Promotes staff development and training programs that improve the proficiency and performance of all levels of pharmacy personnel.
3. Provide oversight to affiliated training programs for pharmacy students, fellows, clerks, and interns.
4. Provide oversight to the ASHP Accredited Pharmacy Residency Program(s).

Research

1. Assure all active research protocols follow FDA, and local policies and procedures as approved by the Medical Centers Investigational Review Board.
2. Oversees for the custody, dispensing and maintenance of investigational drugs in clinical stages of evaluation. Ensures the maintenance of the records of receipts and dispensing of such drugs. Cooperate with the professional staff in providing available drug information. Maintains a file of pertinent data on research drugs.

Customer Service

1. Actively supports the meeting of customer service by fostering an atmosphere that continually puts customers' expectations into defined roles for each employee. Effectively uses care line improvement teams to evaluate customer relations and to bridge the gap between concept and reality.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 0730 - 1600
Telework: Ad-hoc
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• 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).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• Your performance and conduct;
• The needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• Whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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:
(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 2 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 licens e 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.

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 GS-15:

Experience: In addition to the GS-14 requirements, must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level.

Grade Level Criteria. At the GS-15 level, Chiefs of Pharmacy must meet the following:

1. Individuals are assigned as Chiefs of Pharmacy at Complexity Level 1a, 1b or 1c VHA facilities;

Demonstrated KSAs. The KSAs shown below apply to all assignments at this grade level, and the specific KSAs designated by an asterisk (*) apply to assignment 1 and 2.

1. Skill in persuading others and gaining cooperation to accomplish goals.
2. Ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing regarding complex clinical and technical issues.
3. Skill in utilizing regulatory and quality standards to develop and implement operational programs.
4. Skill in managing multiple people or programs.
*5. Skill in utilizing available resources to support the missions and goals of the organization.
*6. Ability to plan, organize and direct the functions of the pharmacy staff

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.

Service Chief. Responsible for all aspects of pharmacy services at a medical facility by maintaining effective interdepartmental relationships demonstrating active problem resolution skills and close cooperation with other programs and services in accomplishing the medical facility mission and goals. Responsible for budget management, determining resource needs, allocating resources, ensuring proper utilization in productivity, efficiency, and cost effectiveness of the operation. Formulates objectives and priorities and implements plans consistent with the long term interest of the organization, capitalizing on opportunities and managing risks. Responsible for compliance with all safety, regulatory, and accrediting body requirements. Delegates authority to several supervisory and program levels to meet the goals of the service and staff. Ensures orientation and training programs are established to ensure staff development, oversees academic affiliations, and participates in medical facility, VISN, National, other external governmental agencies, and professional associations

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

English Language Proficiency: Pharmacists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d)

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.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

• Resume

Special Note for Applications: To complete your application, please use the following link https://vacareers.va.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/Resume.docx to download the standard Clinical Resume Document. This one-page document does not need to be modified and must be uploaded into the two-page restricted 'Resume' document upload field.

Your full resume/CV may be uploaded without page limitation into the 'Other' document upload field.

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please 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
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• License
• Other (1)
• Resume
• SF-15
• 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 Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.

Veterans' preference does not apply for internal or other current permanent Federal agency employees.

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