Summary The Clinical Pharmacy Specialist is a licensed professional with advanced knowledge and proficiency in pharmacy practice including pharmaceutics, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and pharmacotherapeutics. The incumbent functions at an advanced level of clinical practice as a pharmacotherapy specialist for the Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) within the VA North Florida/South Georgia Health Care System, Responsibilities VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn\_ickNBEws Clinical The Clinical Pharmacy Specialist plays a defined role in budgetary execution and serves as a pharmacotherapy specialist who functions to initiate, modify or discontinue medication therapy and serves as a consultant for intensive medication therapy management services. Designs, implements, assesses, monitors and documents therapeutic plans utilizing the most effective, least toxic and most economical medication treatments. Provides appropriate selection of drug therapy based upon the pharmaceutical principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics; monitoring for efficacy, side effects and clinical outcome; and advises other health care providers as appropriate. Supervisory and Administration Activities Assesses drug safety and efficacy, including evaluation of physical symptoms and performance of limited physical assessments. Reports adverse drug events (ADE), near misses, and medication errors in alignment with VA ADERS reporting program. Participates in the NF/SG VHS medication utilization evaluation (MUE) program. Recommends formulary alternatives and completes non-formulary consults as assigned. Documents recommendations, interventions and therapeutic plans. Assists in medical emergencies including code teams (with BLS or ACLS certification) and emergency preparedness activities. Implements P&T Committee policies including therapeutic interchanges and automatic substitutions to include appropriate patient and provider education. Manages recalls and medication shortage situations by substituting alternate dosage strengths and instructions of the same medication to equal the prescribed dose and schedule. Enters supply orders appropriate for patient care per facility policy. Manages various actions, as appropriate, for medication orders to include: flagging prescriptions, managing view alerts, using the "hold medication" function, and generating unsigned discontinued orders using Service Reject. Administrative/Supervisory Functions as acting supervisor or pharmacist in charge when assigned. Reports actual or projected usage patterns to the Procurement Section to assist in the timely and cost effective ordering of supplies to meet patient needs. Represents pharmacy and contributes clinical and administrative expertise as a member of committees within the assigned area. Dispensing and Compounding Reviews all medication orders for appropriateness, drug selection, dosage, route of administration and the amount, prior to dispensing. Ensures all medication orders are entered into the electronic patient medical record. Processes, checks and fills all orders in a timely fashion; review of the patient's allergy history, drug-drug, drug-nutrient, drug-laboratory and drug-disease state interactions and assessment for clinical relevance should be performed and dealt with appropriately. Reviews medication profiles and monitors for compliance or potential abuse; problems encountered shall be resolved. Selects, compounds, dispenses and fills a range of drugs including extemporaneous preparations, special formulations, ophthalmics (subconjunctivals and intravitreal injections), narcotics, investigational drugs, etc., when applicable in the outpatient setting. Adequate quality assurance procedures shall be followed as applicable. Maintains adequate drug stock, inspects drug storage areas, supervises prepacking and the operation of automated dispensing equipment. Supervises the activities and provides oversight of support personnel and technical staff in all aspects of medication distribution. Ensures drugs dispensed are completely and correctly labeled and packaged in full compliance with Federal rules and regulations. Compounds medications in accordance with USP 797 standards and local policies and procedures. Ensures USP 797 regulations for controlled environment are followed. Education Provides education to health care providers regarding medication use. Maintains advanced knowledge of pharmaceutics, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and pharmacotherapeutics in the practice area of Ambulatory Care. Assumes an active role in the overall pharmacy-training program consisting of students, externs, interns, residents, and professional and non-professional staff members. Conducts on-the-job training and provides guidance through designated programs. Keeps abreast of new developments in pharmacy practice and drug therapy by reading pharmacy and medical literature, and participating in continuing education programs. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday - 8hour shift- including weekends, evenings, nights and holidays rotated on a fair and equitable basis based upon the needs of the service Telework: Not available Functional Statement #: 51045F Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Requirements 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. You may be required to serve a probationary period. 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 dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Must pass pre-employment physical examination. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). 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: To qualify for appointment to this position, all applicants must possess the following: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Education 1. 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. 2. Graduates of foreign pharmacy degree programs meet the educational requirement if the 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. Grandfathering Provision. All licensed pharmacists employed in VHA in this occupation 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. To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Grade Level Requirements Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, GS-13. Experience. In addition to the GS-12 requirements, must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities. Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following KSAs: Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisions. Expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for their program area. Ability to solve problems, coordinate and organize responsibilities to maximize outcomes in their program area or area of clinical expertise. Expert knowledge of a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice or specialty area of pharmacy. Advanced skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters. Assignments. Responsible for the professional and administrative management of an assigned area in pharmacy service, to include budgetary execution. Such individuals have responsibilities for supervising multiple pharmacists and technicians. Manages people, maintains effective interdepartmental relations, and cooperates with other services to accomplish the medical facility's mission and goals. Develops performance standards, assures that the program area is compliant with all regulatory and accrediting body requirements, designs and implements orientation and training programs for staff, and develops and maintains systems to monitor the performance of staff activities. Develops policies and procedures relative to their assigned area. 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-13. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. Education IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.