Pharmacy Technician (Inpatient)

This position functions primarily for the inpatient care areas of Pharmacy Service under the supervision of a registered pharmacist. The incumbent is responsible on a rotating basis for provision of medications to hospitalized patients using the unit dose, automated dispensing system, and IV admixture preparation. He/she will also perform inventory inspection, restocking, and ordering functions as well as providing necessary drug supplies to operating rooms and emergency department.

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. a. Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7407(a). 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)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). 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:(1) 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.(2) 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.(3) 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.(4) 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.(5) 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). Grade Determinations: . In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met to determine the appropriate grade assignment of candidates. GS-7:Experience. One-year experience at the next lower level and must fully meet the KSAs at the next lower level. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following technical KSAs and the potential to acquire the assignment specific KSAs designated by an asterisk (*):Certification. PTCB certification is required at this grade level and above. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:(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. 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: 1 year of inpatient experience required. 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-6. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-7. All applicants must upload a copy of their Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) Certificate when submitting their application to be considered. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service.