Duties
Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional
This position also functions in the unit dose, and sterile compounding areas which includes the preparation of IV admixtures and antineoplastic agents, medication distributions and inventory control, emergency crash cart replenishment, simple maintenance of automated dispensing equipment and evaluating data from pharmacy information systems.
Controlled Substances
- Trains new employees how to work in the vault and distribute controlled substances.
- Evaluates automated dispensing cabinet inventory reports and communicates recommendations for optimizing to the appropriate supervisor.
- Fills inpatient and clinic requests for controlled substances; fills outpatient prescriptions for controlled substances.
- Participates in routine inventory counts and inspections.
- Prepares expired or unusable controlled substances for destruction.
- Works with the procurement technicians to ensure appropriate inventory balance and that all invoices and 222 forms are appropriately filed and readily retrievable.
Unit Dose Medication Management
- Fills unit dose and automated dispensing cabinet orders.
- Receives inventory from vendors using provided technology, applies bar-code or other labeling as indicated and restocks shelves.
- Inventories and replenishes emergency cart trays and carts.
- Operates and provides routine maintenance for pharmacy equipment, such as automated dispensing machines and barcode label printers.
- Repackages a wide variety of pharmaceuticals, labeling them properly and leaving them for final verification.
- Performs automatic replenishment and processes requests for ward stock; performs record keeping for these activities.
- Inspects ward stock supplies for unapproved items, storage practices, and outdates; performs record keeping for these activities.
Sterile Compounding
- Prepares sterile hazardous and non-hazardous compounded sterile preparations (CSP's) using aseptic technique and safe handling of hazardous medications described in chapters 797 and 800 of the US Pharmacopoeia.
- Verifies correct formulation and ingredients; selects and measures appropriate components; mixes components in a safe and appropriate manner; inspects the final product for accuracy, appearance and pharmaceutical elegance; labels the product; takes responsibility for ensuring timely delivery.
- Follows established protocols in determining appropriate beyond-use dates on all pharmaceuticals prepared.
- Routinely checks quality control logs for completeness and promptly alerts supervisor of anomalies in documentation.
General
- Teaches pharmacy technicians and students proper technique for the preparation of sterile products.
- Teaches pharmacy technicians and students procedures for the unit dose management system.
- Provides training on controlled substances procedures to technicians, pharmacists, inspectors, and students.
- Interacts with patients, pharmacists, nurses and other clinical staff as required. Answers general questions and refers therapeutic problems to the pharmacist; seeks assistance from others when needed.
- Assists in the TQM of the pharmacy by participating in process action teams, reporting medication errors, and continually seeking ways to improve the service provided to patients and other customers.
Work Schedule: 7 AM - 3:30 PM Monday through Friday with occasional weekends and holidays
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)
Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.
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: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
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.
Required Documents
To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:
- Professional Certification
- Resume
- SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
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
- Other (1)
- Professional Certification
- Resume
- SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 07/28/2025 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12766466.
- To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.
- Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package.
NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.
Next steps
Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After we receive application packages (including all required documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made.
You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center.
NOTE: Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a condition of employment and a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full- and part-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities.