Clarification from the agency

This job is open to current permanent Department of Veteran Affairs employees, current permanent Federal employees of other agencies. First area of consideration is Facility. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

This position directly supports the infusion center at the Lake Baldwin outpatient clinic. This involves all day to day operations required in the decentralized infusion pharmacy.

The pharmacist provides appropriate selection of drug therapy based upon the pharmaceutical principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics; monitoring for efficacy, side effects and clinical outcome; and advises prescribers as appropriate.

Provides patient-specific therapeutic drug monitoring and communicates relevant findings and/or recommendations to other health care providers in charge of the patient both orally and in writing. Monitoring will include prospective review and intervention in:

• Therapeutic appropriateness of a patient's drug regimen
• Therapeutic duplication in the patient's drug regimen
• Appropriateness of the route and method of administration
• Degree of patient compliance with the prescribed drug regimen
• Drug-drug, drug-food, drug-laboratory, or drug disease interactions
• Clinical and pharmacokinetic laboratory data to evaluate the efficacy of drug therapy and to anticipate side effects, toxicity, or adverse effects
• Physical signs and clinical symptoms relevant to the patient's drug therapy
• Performs continuous evaluation of prescribed medications to assure optimal drug therapy.

Dispensing

• Reviews all medication orders for appropriateness, drug selection, dosage, route of administration and the amount, prior to dispensing.
• Ensures all medication orders are entered into the electronic patient medical record.
• Fills all orders in a timely fashion; review of the patient's allergy history, drug-drug, drug-nutrient, drug-laboratory and drug-disease state interactions and assessment for clinical relevance should be performed and dealt with appropriately.
• Reviews medication profiles and monitors for compliance or potential abuse; problems encountered shall be resolved.
• Selects, compounds, dispenses and fills a range of drugs including extemporaneous preparations, special formulations, ophthalmics (subconjunctivals and intravitreal injections), narcotics, investigational drugs, oncolytic agents, etc., in both outpatient and inpatient areas. Adequate quality assurance procedures shall be followed as applicable.
• Supervises the activities of support personnel.
• Ensures drugs dispensed are completely and correctly labeled and packaged in full compliance with Federal rules and regulations.
• The pharmacist will maintain strict security over all medications in the pharmacy. The Inpatient pharmacist will maintain the security of the pharmacy, making sure that only pharmacy employees, volunteers, students, or other facility employees, with approval, are allowed access to the pharmacy.

Infusion

• Procures, packages, stores & distributes sterile products & supplies for areas including Oncology/Infusion Clinic, Community Living Center (CLC), and Operating Room (OR) or for patients in other treatment areas within established procedures & legal requirements.
• Assures compliance with all applicable rules, regulations, and local or VAH policies & procedures concerning acquisition, storage, and dispensing of sterile compounded products.
• Maintains adequate pharmacy and controlled substance security.
• Aware of applicable DEA regulations for controlled substances and assures compliance; maintains proper records related to controlled substances.
• Documents responsibility by signing invoices, compounding records, sterile product labels and other forms.
• Resolves drug, supply & equipment problems with appropriate timeliness.
• Interacts with manufacturers of equipment, medications, and other supplies utilized in sterile compounding
• Ensures the proper utilization of personnel, equipment and space in the compounding area.
• Maintains work area to ensure storage & work areas are clean & organized for a safe work environment.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 7:00am- 3:30pm based upon the needs of the service. Employees may be required to work rotating tours- Employees may be required to work day, evening, night, weekend, holiday and or compressed, tours on a rotating schedule. The hours may vary per the needs of the service and will rotate, on a fair and equitable basis, to include weekends and holidays.
Telework: Not Authorized
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 82336F
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive.Contact Jamie Wunsch at V8_EDRP_Orlando@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more

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

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:

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

Education-Transcripts Submitted:(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-Documentation Submitted. 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.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: In addition to the basic requirements for employment above, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Assignment. A pharmacist in this assignment handles routine medication-related activities in accordance with local, Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN), and national policies and regulations. These include, but are not limited to: reviewing, interpreting, and verifying medication orders for appropriateness; processing and filling medication orders; interacting with and making recommendations to other clinical staff regarding medication therapy ordered to ensure safe and effective care; reviewing the patient's medications, allergies, labs, and other pertinent information from the medical record to identify and solve medication-related problems; contacting providers as appropriate; documenting recommendations and interventions; providing refill extensions and partial medication supplies; taking health and medication histories; performing medication reconciliation; providing drug information; assisting in formulary management including therapeutic substitutions, nonformulary reviews and medication usage evaluations; documenting and assessing adverse drug events (ADEs); assisting in medical emergencies; providing oversight of technical staff in all aspects of medication distribution.

Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs):

1. Knowledge of professional pharmacy practice.
2. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to both patients and health care staff.
3. Knowledge of laws, regulations, and accreditation standards related to the distribution and control of scheduled and non-scheduled drugs and pharmacy security.
4. Skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters.

Preferred Experience: Infusion: Sterile compounding in inpatient setting and board certification in applicable area

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

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12

Physical Requirements: Physical aspects associated with work required of this assignment are typical for the occupation, see Duties section for essential job duties of the position. May require standing, lifting, carrying, sitting, stooping, bending, pulling, color differentiation, and pushing. May be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Area of Consideration - Eligible applications will be reviewed and referred in the following order:

• Current permanent VA employees of the facility.
• All other VA employees.
• All other applicants.

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:

• Professional Certification
• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

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.

• Resume/ CV over 2 pages
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

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