Pharmacy Technician - Clinical
What you'd do
The Pharmacy Technician supports the clinical programs at the St. Cloud VA Health Care System by providing administrative, clerical, and clinical support for outpatient and specialty clinics. Duties include laboratory value monitoring, medical chart review, telephone logistical support, patient education communication, population management dashboard review, and processing Care in the Community, Fee Basis, Aid & Attendance, and Self-Directed Care prescriptions.
Major duties
Major duties include, but are not limited to the following: Anticoagulation Clinic Support Obtains necessary supplies from laboratory service and stocks and reviews supply for proper storage and outdates. Performs Point of Care (POC) testing for International Normalized Ratio (INR). Reviews medication history, changes, adherence and complications of therapy during scheduled INR testing process. Assists with addressing direct oral anticoagulation (DOAC) dashboard flags. Monitors and alerts Pharmacist to available DOAC lab monitoring results. Assists with scheduling future lab orders and follow-up appointments. Prints daily schedules and "no shows/lost to follow up" reports for patients on warfarin and reviews patient records for out of-range INRs being addressed. Alerts providers of need to address out-of-range INR results. Reviews both reports and patients' electronic health record (EHR) to identify which patients have and have not been followed up with in the last 60 days. Provides support rescheduling patients who have missed appointments, completes telephone interviews with patients who have obtained INRs from outside labs, and triages incoming telephone calls from patients, family members and other health providers. Addresses INR results utilizing a facility-approved warfarin protocol. Manages and triages telephone calls, secure messages and faxes received in the Anticoagulation Management Program. Documents activities in the Electronic Health Record as required. Prescriptions from Outside VA Receives and reviews prescriptions received from outside clinics to determine appropriate eligibility, to include Care in the Community, Fee Basis, Aid & Attendance and Self-Directed Care. Validates electronic prescriptions to confirm the appropriate patient, provider and medication are selected when submitting the prescription to the VA EHR. Identifies formulary medications and coordinates process for approval of non-formulary or prior authorization medications, to include obtaining documentation, as necessary. Communicates non-formulary and prior authorization denials to non-VA clinics and provides supporting documentation, as necessary. Monitors and documents actions taken to ensure prescriptions are addressed timely. Documents activities in the Electronic Health Record as required Population Management Reviews patients flagged by population management dashboards. Conducts detailed chart reviews. Performs phone interviews using standardized templates and documents interactions and findings in the Electronic Health Record for Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner review. Alerts Clinical Pharmacist Practitioners for follow-up as needed. Enters return to clinic orders for Clinical Pharmacist Practitioners. Patient Care Answers questions from Pharmacy and non-Pharmacy personnel regarding drug distribution. Manages and triages telephone calls, secure messages, message manager requests and email requests received by Pharmacy. Identifies basic therapeutic problems and alerts Pharmacist to the possible need for clinical intervention. Documents activities in the Electronic Health Record as required. Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm 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). 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 Eligible Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
What you need to qualify
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: Pharmacy Technician candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). 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). 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. 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: Pharmacy Technician, GS-08: Experience: Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-7) and demonstrate the KSAs below. GS-7 level experience requires the below Knowledge of pharmacy technician principles, practices, concepts and theories providing for sound independent work. Knowledge of the computerized prescription process and input of prescriptions and medication orders or electronic equivalent. Ability to resolve pharmacy/medication issues with other members of the healthcare team, Veterans and external customers. Ability to train developmental pharmacy technicians and students. Ability to dispense medication or sterile products following all regulations, policies and procedures to ensure safe medication distribution. Ability to troubleshoot automated dispensing equipment (ADE) or technology platforms/databases. 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 for all GS-08 assignments and meet any additional KSAs for the assignment, if indicated: Comprehensive knowledge of concepts, principles, methodology and policies in a specialized area or section of pharmacy (such as sterile compounding, controlled substances, automation, clinical pharmacy, contact center, etc.) Skill in training and orienting new and existing pharmacy facility employees and students on proper policies and procedures. Ability to evaluate, analyze and coordinate workflow and work activities within a specialized area or section of the pharmacy. 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-8. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-8. Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.
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