Clinical Pharmacy Specialist - Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT)

Summary The Clinical Pharmacy Specialist (CPS) is a licensed pharmacist who functions at the highest level of clinical practice and works independently as a Clinical Pharmacist Practitioner (CPP) under their scope of practice to directly care for patients. The CPP serves as an advanced practice provider who functions to initiate - modify or discontinue medication therapy and as a consultant for intensive medication therapy management services. Qualifications Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA PolicyEducation: 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.) degreeNOTE: Prior to 2005 ACPE accredited both baccalaureate and Doctor of Pharmacy terminal degree programToday the sole degree is Doctor of PharmacyLicensure: 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 ColumbiaException: Non-licensed pharmacists who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements may be given a temporary appointment at the entry level as a Graduate Pharmacist under the authority of 38 U.S.C.7405(c)(2)(B)The appointing official may waive the requirement of licensure for a period not to exceed 2 years for a pharmacist that provides care under the supervision of a licensed pharmacistForeign Education: 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)English Language Proficiency: Pharmacists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d) - and 7407(d)Grade Determinations: GS-13 Clinical Pharmacist ExperienceIn addition to the GS-12 requirements - must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level11 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level - or 2Completion of an ACPE-accredited Pharm.D. programDemonstrated Knowledge - Skills - and AbilitiesPharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following KSAs: aAbility to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisionsbExpert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for their program areacAbility to solve problems - coordinate and organize responsibilities to maximize outcomes in their program area or area of clinical expertisedExpert knowledge of a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice or specialty area of pharmacyeAdvanced skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies - including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parametersPreferred Experience 1Completion of Pharmacy Residency accredited by American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) OR2At least one year of Clinical ambulatory care experience and ability to demonstrate the following higher level duties: initiate - modify - or discontinue medication therapydesign - implement - assess - monitor and document therapeutic plans utilizing the most effective - least toxic and most economical medication treatmentshelp achieve positive patient centric outcomes through direct and indirect interactions with patients - providers and interdisciplinary teamsperform physical assessmentsand order laboratory and other tests to help determine efficacy and toxicity of medication therapyReference: For more information on this qualification standard - please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-13Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this positionQuestions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination. Duties The CPP will be assigned to the PACT team in the primary care clinicsTeams are located in the main facility and associated community-based outpatient clinicsThe CPP will be consulted by their team(s) for comprehensive medication management of complex patients with chronic diseases commonly seen in the primary care settingClinical 1) Core functions include face-to-face - telephone - and VA video connect (VVC) encounters with referred patients - for comprehensive medication management in practice areas identified in their individual scope of practice2) Functions as an advanced practice provider to design - implement - and monitor therapeutic drug plans with an independent scope of practiceiInitiates - modifies or discontinues patient's medication therapy for intensive medication therapy management servicesProvides patient-specific drug therapy modifications to maximize patient response and minimizing drug interactions - adverse drug effects - and polypharmacy while providing cost-effective treatmentThe assessments are based on clinical reviews and objective measuresiiOrders - performs - reviews and analyzes appropriate laboratory tests and other diagnostic studies necessary to monitor and support the patient's drug therapyProvides follow-up with patients on lab or test results to discuss the plan of therapy (i.echanges in medication therapy - monitoring and evaluation - additional testing requirements - referral to primary care or specialty care physician)iiiEnsures therapeutic appropriateness of a patient's drug regimen - reviewing for potential therapeutic duplications - drug-drug - drug-food - drug-laboratory - or drug-disease interactionsivEvaluates and orders supply items as appropriate for patient carevDetermines if a referral to the physician is necessary when disease progression occurs or adverse drug events require treatment interventions outside of the CPP scope of practice3) Serves as an independent anticoagulation provider in the anticoagulation clinic as needed/scheduled4) Supervises the activities of clinical pharmacy technician(s)iMonitors and directs the clinical pharmacy technician(s) in patient care responsibilitiesReports any serious problems to supervisoriiAssigns tasks and sets priorities for clinical pharmacy technician(s) when in the practice areaProvides guidance and direction as needed for efficient accomplishment of tasks assignediiiReviews the work of the clinical pharmacy technician(s) and takes corrective action if neededDrug Information 1) Serves as an authority on drug usage - interactions - over-dosages - and adherence to medical staff - nursing staff - technicians - and students2) Has good working knowledge of information resources - both written and electronic3) Recommends formulary alternatives and completes non-formulary consults as assigned4) Provides timely and accurate responses to drug information inquiries from all customersEducation 1) Assumes an active role in staff development of peers and provides pharmacy-related educational opportunities to nursing - medical staff or to other ancillary services2) Maintains his/her professional competency by keeping abreast of current medical and pharmaceutical literature - new drugs and therapies - pharmacokinetics - pharmacodynamics - and pharmacotherapeutics in the area of practice3) Participates in the training and in-servicing of pharmacists - pharmacy technicians - pharmacy students - pharmacy residents - and other staff on assigned teams4) Serves as preceptor for pharmacy students and pharmacy residents in accordance with established policiesResearch 1) Participation in research activities must be in accordance with FDA guidelines and regulations and VHA policy2) The CPP may be involved in designing and conducting research studies or assist in the sameProposals for research must be submitted to the IRB and Research and Development CommitteeOther 1) Serves on medical center and/or VISN committees as assigned2) Adheres to all medical center and department policies and regulationsWork Schedule: Monday - Friday - 7:30 AM - 4:00 PM Telework: Not available Virtual: This is not a virtual positionFunctional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized