Pharmacy Technician

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.

01Basic 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 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. 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).

02Grade Determinations

Pharmacy Technician, GS-08 Experience: One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level Certification: For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either: (a) PTCB as a CPhT. OR (b) NHA as a ExCPT.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs and meet any additional KSAs for the assignment, if indicated: (a) 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.) Note: See Specialized Area.in the Definitions Section. (b) Skill in training and orienting new and existing pharmacy facility employees and students on proper policies and procedures. (c) Ability to evaluate, analyze and coordinate workflow and work activities within a specialized area or section of the pharmacy.

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 have a higher level of responsibility for specialized areas of pharmacy and are expected to independently carry out assigned tasks of considerable difficulty.

Pharmacy technicians at this grade level may be appointed to one of the following assignments: (a) Pharmacy Technician. Pharmacy technicians in this assignment specialize in areas such as sterile compounding, oncology, controlled substances, medication history review, clinical specialist (anticoagulation, pain, infectious diseases), clinical informatics, automation, immunizations and any other specialized area in the advancement of the profession.

The pharmacy technician will serve as a subject matter expert and key resource in the day-to-day technician duties of the specialized area. The technician will be performing assignments such as compounding sterile products, filling controlled substance prescriptions while maintaining compliance with Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) regulations, taking medication histories and counseling patients, managing automation, managing workflow and training and orienting staff in the specialized area.

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).

03Preferred Experience

Care in the Community formulary management and prescription processing Experience. 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-08.

04Physical Requirements

Must be physically and mentally able to perform efficiently the duties of the position

VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn_ickNBEws Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Major duties include but are not limited to: Provides Community (Non-VA) Care prescription service support. Receives, reviews and triages faxed, mailed, electronically prescribed, or delivered prescriptions written by Non-VA providers and documents all received prescriptions in CPRS, as necessary.

Reviews appropriate third-party contractors (e.g., Optum) authorization portal and CPRS to determine authorization of Non-VA Care by the Salisbury VA Healthcare System (VAHCS) Communicates with patients concerning prescriptions received from unauthorized provider visits and handles prescriptions appropriately.

Reviews authorized prescriptions for appropriateness using clinical pharmacy technician knowledge, as well comprehensive knowledge of the formulary process and knowledge concerning the national drug formulary and local VA formulary requirements. Communicates with Non-VA physicians and nurses to request clarification of prescriptions. Documents all communication with Non-VA providers in CPRS using the appropriate note titles.

Initiates the non-formulary/prior authorization process with the Non-VA provider and records needed documentation in CPRS and workflow file. Maintains a comprehensive knowledge of controlled substance directives, policies and procedures, national, state, and local laws. Ability to identify and investigate discrepancies in these policies and procedures.

Reviews the North Carolina Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) website to ensure appropriateness of received prescription, determine exact due date of medication, and prevent duplicate and overprescribing of controlled substances and document in CPRS. Files all Non-VA Care prescriptions according to VA and DEA Policy.

Answers the Non-VA Care Pharmacy line and handles all phone calls not requiring a pharmacist Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; 8:00am-4:30pm Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized