Summary
Under the supervision of a pharmacist - pharmacy technicians perform routine pharmacy functions including filling - preparation and dispensing of prescriptions - sterile compounding preparation - management of automated dispensing equipment (ADE) - inventory management and multiple types of customer contact services.
Qualifications
COVERAGE. The following are requirements for appointment or placement as a Pharmacy Technician in Veterans Health Administration (VHA). The requirements will apply to all VHA pharmacy technicians employed in the General Schedule (GS) 0661 series performing a variety of pharmacy duties under the supervision of a pharmacist.
Basic Requirements:
- a
- Citizenship
- Be a citizen of the United States
- b
- Education or Experience
- (1) None required
- (2) 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
- c
- Certification
- For positions above the full performance level - the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either: (1) Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) - Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT)
- OR (2) National Healthcareer Association (NHA) - Certified Pharmacy Technician (ExCPT)
- d
- Physical Requirements
- See VA Directive and Handbook 5019 - Employee Occupational Health Service
- e
- 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 GRADE DETERMINATIONS
- In addition to the basic requirements for appointment - VA HR staff must use the following criteria to determine the appropriate grade assignment of candidates
- Pharmacy Technician - GS-07
- (1) Experience
- Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level
- Pharmacy technicians at the GS-06 full performance level may fill orders - dispense/deliver medications using automated systems or provide technical customer service to Veterans related to prescription needs
- Duties will include delivery of medications to floors/patients - filling medications for the pharmacist to review - checking for expired medications - answering phones with appropriate disposition - preparing sterile products (when applicable) and assisting with basic inventory management such as putting up stock and identifying when medications need to be ordered
- (2) Certification
- For positions above the full performance level - the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either: (a) PTCB as a CPhT
- OR (b) NHA as a ExCPT
- (3) Knowledge - Skills and Abilities (KSAs)
- In addition to the experience above - the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Knowledge of pharmacy technician principles - practices - concepts and theories providing for sound independent work
- (b) Knowledge of the computerized prescription process and input of prescriptions and medication orders or electronic equivalent
- (c) Ability to resolve pharmacy/medication issues with other members of the healthcare team - Veterans and external customers
- (d) Ability to train developmental pharmacy technicians and students
- (e) Ability to dispense medication or sterile products following all regulations - policies and procedures to ensure safe medication distribution
- (f) Ability to troubleshoot automated dispensing equipment (ADE) or technology platforms/databases
- (4) 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 level are nationally certified and can work autonomously using independent judgement to perform a full range of duties
- These pharmacy technicians mentor and train lower graded pharmacy technicians in the practice setting
- They assist advanced/ specialized pharmacy technicians and participate in performance improvement initiatives
- At this level - pharmacy technicians use independent judgement to perform the full range of duties in the pharmacy
- They also function as staff pharmacy technicians in various locations of the pharmacy - including pharmacy contact centers and other non-traditional pharmacy locations - with minimal oversight Preferred Experience: 2-3 years of outpatient pharmacy experience preferred
- Current or recent experience working with CPRS/VISTA computer systems
- Proficient in Microsoft Excel
- Proficient in Script Pro
- Experience with medication procurement
- Reference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
- FORMER VA HANDBOOK REFERENCE: PART II APPENDIX G28 EFFECTIVE DATE: November 07 - 2023 Physical Requirements: Principal duties of this position require repetitive use of hands and fingers (e.g. - preparing prescriptions - use of a computer keyboard - etc.)
- May require lifting and carrying light loads (up to 44 lbs.) - including boxes - equipment - medical supplies - stock boxes etc.
- stooping or kneeling (e.g. - to pick up items from the floor - remove and replace items on lower shelves - and to file documents in lower file drawers - etc.)
- sitting - walking - or standing for long periods of time (4-8 hours)
- Ability to operate automation
- Normal ranges of hearing and vision are required to perform work and communicate effectively
- An ability to perform tasks
- DEFINITIONS
- a
- Creditable Experience
- To be creditable - a candidate must possess the required knowledge - skills and abilities (KSAs) associated with the scope of pharmacy technician practice
- The candidate's experience must be evidenced by active professional practice
- (Active professional practice means paid/nonpaid employment as a professional pharmacy technician.) b
- Part-Time Experience
- Part-time experience is creditable according to its relationship to the full-time work week
- For example - one week of full-time credit is equivalent to two weeks of half-time work
- c
- Quality of Experience
- Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to pharmacy technician experience at the next lower grade level
- For all assignments above the full performance level - the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope - administrative independence - complexity 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
- d
- Specialized Area
- Areas within pharmacy that require advanced knowledge - skills and abilities to ensure a high level of accountability for patient safety - quality of care and/or VHA or other regulatory requirements
- Examples include - but are not limited to compounding sterile products - controlled substance dispensing - research - automation - clinical informatics - quality assurance - hazardous medication compounding/management - immunizations and clinical pharmacy assignments.
Duties
- The GS-7 Pharmacy Technician will provide administrative - clerical and basic clinical support to the clinical pharmacy section of the Home-Based Primary Care (HBPC) Service
- The incumbent must have the ability to independently gather - evaluate and analyze patient data
- The incumbent must be able to communicate orally and in writing in an accurate and concise manner which supports the needs of the customer
- The GS-7 Pharmacy Technician will function in HBPC patient care areas providing various technical support services within the pharmacy division
- The incumbent will promote harmonious relationships within the work environment supporting the needs of the patient care team and the patient
- Assists the clinical pharmacy service and interdisciplinary HBPC team in clinic duties as assigned including patient and health care professional contact - data collection and analysis - entry of information into patient databases - chart review and drug information
- This could include communicating with other services and disciplines (i.e
- coordinate medication delivery and administration - communicate with outpatient pharmacy service to fill controlled substances - and communicate with other healthcare providers to ensure active and accurate prescriptions are available for all patients involved in the medication bubble packing program)
- Triages telephone calls from patients - family members - and/or caregivers to address a variety of issues - evaluate the problem - and provide an appropriate solution or refer the problem expeditiously to the pharmacist and/or interdisciplinary HBPC team when the problem is beyond the technician's level of knowledge or expertise
- Obtains vital signs and point of care (POC) labs (e.g. - glucose - INR) and documents subsequent values appropriately in the electronic medical chart
- The HBPC clinical pharmacy technician ensures appropriate training and certifications are maintained
- Takes data provided by patients in the form of home logs and compiles that data for interpretation by the clinical pharmacy specialist and/or interdisciplinary HBPC team
- Additionally - the clinical pharmacy technician is familiar with procedures to upload data from glucometers or other POC machines to a computer
- Provides patient education on pharmacy topics including prescription refills - patient rights and responsibilities and education specific to the clinic procedures
- Documents communication with patients in CPRS/VISTA
- Routinely reviews computer medication profile of patients and will notify pharmacist and/or interdisciplinary HBPC team of issues related to prescription duplication - therapeutic duplication - medication compliance - allergies or adverse reactions which are identified through patient communication or medical record review
- Provides supplemental reinforcement education for patients and/or caregivers concerning operational issues or need for therapy compliance through routine adherence phone calls
- Routinely performs patient medical chart reviews to identify polypharmacy and/or identify medication changes
- Expeditiously reports identified patients to assigned clinical pharmacist and/or interdisciplinary HBPC team for evaluation and where appropriate documents in CPRS
- Updates and manages local inventory used for medication blister packing
- Communicates with local inventory procurement specialist to ensure adequate inventory supply
- Collects inventory medication lot and expiration date and communicates medication recall information to blister packing team when appropriate
- Ships and tracks medication blister packs to patients - including occasional patient home visits for medication delivery when determined to be necessary by interdisciplinary HBPC team
- Reviews medication blister packing consults on a routine basis - screens consult for appropriateness and schedules new patient - if appropriate - for initial visit with clinical pharmacy specialist
- Updates and maintains the clinic databases as required
- Assists in conducting and reporting internal audits as required
- Maintains all pertinent professional and administrative records as necessary
- Assists in data collection and analysis for drug utilization evaluation - medication errors - adverse drug events and performance improvement initiatives
- Provides administrative support for the ongoing professional practice evaluation (OPPE) process for clinical pharmacy section
- Work Schedule: Days - Monday - Friday Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not authorized Telework: Ad Hoc available
- Telework that occurs on an occasional - non-routine basis
- Telework that occurs to complete short-term special assignments or to accommodate special circumstances even though the telework arrangement may occur continuously for a limited and specific period of time
- Virtual: This is not a virtual position
- Functional Statement #: 523-F03439 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized
