Clinical Pharmacist

The clinical pharmacist handles routine medication-related activities in accordance with local, Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN), and national policies and regulations. The primary role of the clinical pharmacist is to ensure safe and appropriate medication use by evaluating drug therapy based on patient-specific factors, individualizing treatment, dispensing medications, and providing drug information.

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.) 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). 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 :

In addition to the basic requirements, the following criteria must be used when determining the appropriate grade assignment of candidates. GS-12 Clinical Pharmacist Education and Experience. (a) 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-11), or (b) completion of an ACPE-accredited PharmD. Program. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs). Knowledge of professional pharmacy practice. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to both patients and health care staff. Knowledge of laws, regulations, and accreditation standards related to the distribution and control of scheduled and non-scheduled drugs and pharmacy security. Skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters.

Reference:

For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/ . The full performance level of this vacancy is 12. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is 12.

Physical Requirements:

Walk, sit, and/or stand for extended periods. Lift, carry or move cartons of approximately 30lbs. Push or pull medication delivery carts of varying sizes.