Clarification from the agency

This vacancy is open to current, permanent VA employees AND past, current and upcoming participants of the VA Health Professions Training (HPT) graduates. First consideration will be given to current, permanent employees of VISN 17. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

The VISN CCC Clinical Pharmacist's primary responsibility is the utilization of evidence- based pharmaceutical care services through direct interactions with patients and providers as well as the safe provision of pharmaceuticals and medication information in a timely manner. This pharmacist promotes and manages drug therapy based on current clinical knowledge and established policies.
Responsibilities also include but are not limited to:

• Completion of electronic prescription orders, checking of completed prescription orders for accuracy and safety, management of VA and VISN formularies, and assistance in achieving VISN goals related to medication management and patient care.
• Receiving and handling escalated telephone calls from and responding to veterans, their family members and/or legal representatives regarding a broad range of topics, including: appropriate use of medications and medical devices, basic billing inquiries, clinical questions, medication refills/renewals, drug-drug interactions, adverse effects, food-drug interactions, product availability, and pharmacy policies as appropriate.
• Monitoring provider's orders for appropriateness of therapy and reports drug errors, adverse drug reactions, allergies, incompatibilities, side effects and patient compliance issues and appropriately interacts with the ordering provider or attending as needed.
• Actively reviewing patient medication regimens for cost effective drug selection, dosing, contraindications, therapeutic duplication, appropriate route and method of administration, drug interactions, and therapeutic outcomes as required. Providing findings and responses to drug information requests to prescribers in a timely manner and provides appropriate alternatives to current treatment plans as needed.
• Utilizing patient care information systems such as VistA and CPRS to obtain critical patient data elements and to document clinical interventions and other pertinent patient care issues in a timely and professional manner.
• Managing recalls and medication shortage situations by substituting alternate dosage strengths or products per facility policy.
• Entering supply orders appropriate for patient care per VISN CCC policy.
• Managing various actions, as appropriate, for medication orders to include flagging prescriptions, managing view alerts, using the "hold" function, and generating unsigned discontinued orders using the "service reject" function.
• Reviewing prescription renewal verification requests and taking appropriate action to extend refills until the next scheduled appointment under the provider's name per VISN CCC policy.
• Participating in continuous daily improvement, Unit Practice Councils and similar quality improvement initiatives.
• Participating in the training and in-servicing of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmacy residents, pharmacy students, and other medical center personnel as required.
• Acting as a point-of-contact for outside services in assisting with patient care issues.
• Completing additional duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: CCC is open a 365-day 24/7, 80 hours per pay period. Work schedules will be determined based on staffing needs and may require rotating shifts. Holidays and weekend work are required.
Virtual: This is a virtual position.
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: 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

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

Grade Determinations:GS-11 Pharmacist

1. Experience, Education, and Licensure. None beyond the basic requirements. (NOTE: See exception to licensure requirement in subparagraph 2c(1) above.)
   • Assignment. Pharmacists at this grade level serve in a developmental capacity.

GS-12 Clinical Pharmacist (Full Performance Level)

• Experience or Education: In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must meet one of the following:
  • 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, or
  • Completion of an ACPE-accredited Pharm.D. program.

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.

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).

Preferred Experience:

• Five years of outpatient pharmacy experience
• Experience with VA Health Connect clinical operations
• Ability to multi-task in a fast paced work environment
• Ability to self-resolve technical/computer issues
• Very strong service skills

Reference: 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: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019.

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
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action

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
• Disability Letter (Schedule A)
• Disability Letter (VA)
• License
• Other (1)
• PCS Orders
• Performance Appraisal
• Professional Certification
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• 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.

Next steps