Supervisory Pharmacy Technician - Inpatient

Clarification from the agency

This is a PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT and is open to Federal employees from agencies other than Department of VA and All US Citizens. Federal employees from agencies other than the Department of VA and U.S. Citizens applicants will be referred on separate certificates. If you are a current permanent employee of the Iowa City VA HCS or current VA Nationwide employee, you should apply under internal announcement number CBSY-13074060-26-MI

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

The Technician Supervisor must have an extensive knowledge of facility's pharmacy policies and procedures and the use of specialized equipment. The Technician Supervisor will communicate with VISN and facility leadership and staff when deemed appropriate and necessary.

FUNCTIONS OR SCOPE OF ASSIGNED DUTIES: The Inpatient Pharmacy Technician Supervisor functions within any area of the inpatient or outpatient pharmacy, vault, clean room, clinic, procedural area, operating room, and inpatient wards both within the facility and at off-site locations.

Customer Service

• Treat patients, team members, other facility employees and visitors with dignity and respect.
• Responds to the needs of the Veteran and staff in a courteous and timely manner.
• Demonstrate appropriate and proactive interpersonal skills to achieve the goals of the service.
• Act as a team member and always supports the group's efforts.
• Demonstrate an ability to work under a variety of circumstances to maximize group productivity and quality of care.

• Maintain competence in compounded sterile preparations and compounded hazardous medications, including appropriate preparation, stability, handling, beyond use dating, and disposal.
• Maintain competence in all operational aspects of pharmacy service including specialty equipment and materials, automation, distribution, labeling, packaging, dispensing documentation, controlled substance accountability, procurement, and inventory management.
• Ensure databases are updated with new or outdated products.
• Troubleshoot in the event of equipment or associated software malfunction, work with vendors and internal services to solve problems.
• Maintain ordering officer designations and knowledge of VA formulary and VA contractual requirements for procurement; order medications and supplies to meet anticipated patient care requirements; manage drug shortages and avoid waste.
• Serve as a backup for all department procurement activities.
• Perform all annual inventory functions in the inpatient pharmacy.
• Ensure medication recalls are handled appropriately.
• Ensure the IV compounding areas are operating within specifications, or appropriate corrective action is taken.
• Create and maintain all SOPs for equipment used in the inpatient pharmacy (MedCarousel, Omnicell cabinets, IVX camera system, unit dose medication packager)

• Train, schedule, and supervise all pharmacy technicians and students, ensure all pharmacy policies and procedures are followed and maximize efficiency.
• Perform all performance appraisals for technical staff
• Train pharmacists and technicians on new equipment and processes.
• Conduct annual competencies for all staff for sterile compounding and initial competencies for all equipment use.
• Work closely with Pharmacy Management to execute strategic plans and policies.

• Demonstrate skill at using both written and verbal communication techniques in teaching others.
• Assist in new employee orientation, competency assessments, and mentoring as required.

• Serve on department or medical center committees as requested.
• Adhere to all medical center and department policies and procedures.
• Manage information security within areas of responsibility to ensure that computer system security and confidentiality of sensitive information is maintained, and that employee access to sensitive information is limited only to that which the employee requires to perform their duties. Report and address violations of information security.
• Maintain the security of pharmaceuticals according to local policies and federal and state regulations.

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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• 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.

• 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.

Qualifications

All requirements must be met at the time of the announcement closing.

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 or Experience.
  • None required.
  • For all grade levels and positions that accept both education and experience to qualify, equivalent combinations of qualifying education and experience that total at least 100% are qualifying. The combined percentage is determined by adding total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level to the education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level.
• Certification. For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either:
  • Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB), Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT). OR
  • National Healthcareer Association (NHA), Certified Pharmacy Technician (ExCPT).
• Grandfathering Provision. Pharmacy technicians employed in VHA on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including positive education and licensure/certification/registration that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements in this standard but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:
  • Employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level or changed to lower grade within the occupation but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.
  • Employees in an occupation that requires a licensure/certification/ registration only at higher grade levels must meet the licensure/ certification/registration requirement before they can be promoted to those higher grade levels.
  • Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
  • Employees who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re-entry to the occupation.
  • Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation.
• Foreign Education. To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must be deemed at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. program by a private organization specializing in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials.
• English Language Proficiency. Pharmacy Technician candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

• Experience. Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-08) and demonstrate the KSAs below.
• Certification. For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either:
  • PTCB as a CPhT. OR
  • NHA as a ExCPT.

• Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs and meet any additional KSAs for the assignment, if indicated:
  • Expert knowledge serving as a key resource advising others in their particular specialty area or section of the pharmacy (such as procurement, sterile compounding (USP compounding standards),controlled substances DEA, automation, clinical pharmacy, lead tech, contact center, etc.).
  • Skill in analyzing data for self-driven (independent) performance improvement projects, workload analysis and statistical reports.
  • Skill in solving problems and implementing corrective actions to maximize outcomes in their program area.
  • Ability to maintain special accreditations and prepare for national reviews/inspections (e.g., The Joint Commission, Inspector General, American Society of Health System Pharmacists®, controlled substance inspections).
  • Ability to develop training programs and material for orientation, competency development and educational needs for regulatory requirements within the specialized pharmacy program area.
  • Skill in interpersonal relationships in dealing with employees, team leaders and managers.
  • Ability to utilize staffing methodology principles to determine adequate staffing to coordinate and manage workflow and work activities within pharmacy.
• Assignments. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity and range of variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. Pharmacy technicians at this grade level may be appointed to one of the following assignments. Supervisory pharmacy technicians are responsible for management and supervision of at least three GS-08 pharmacy technicians. These positions require significant independent technical judgement and expertise in complex areas of pharmacy practice, regulatory requirements and quality standards. They organize, coordinate and manage programs for the pharmacy service at the facility level. These pharmacy technicians will be responsible for communicating with VISN or national pharmacy leadership as well as individual facility leadership and staff.

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:

• Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV)
• Professional Certification

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (VA)
• Long-form resume/Curriculum vitae (CV)
• **Highly Recommended** Write to the Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) on a separate document - KSAs are found under qualification/grade requirements in the announcement.
• Professional Certification
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

Next steps