Summary

The Clinical Pharmacy Specialist (CPS) functions at the highest level of clinical practice - working independently under their scope of practice to provide evidence-based comprehensive medication management services including initiating - modifying - monitoring and discontinuing therapy. The Mental Health CPS possesses specialized knowledge and background training to create and execute individualized treatment plans specific to Veterans' mental health needs.

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 (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
• 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
• (2) 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 InternetBased 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
• Grandfathering Provision 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: GS-13 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 GRADE REQUIREMENTS a
• Creditable Experience (1) Knowledge of Professional Pharmacy Practices
• To be creditable - the experience must have demonstrated the use of knowledge - skills - and abilities associated with professional pharmacy practice
• Professional practice means paid/non-paid employment as a professional or unlicensed graduate pharmacist as defined by the appropriate licensing board
• (2) Residency and Fellowship Training
• Residency and fellowship training programs in a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice may be substituted for creditable experience on a year-for- year basis
• The pharmacy residency program must be accredited by the American Society of Health- System Pharmacists (ASHP)
• A fellowship program that is not accredited by the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) will need to have comparable standards for experience to be creditable (Professional Standards Board refers to the Deputy Chief Consultant for Professional Practice for the determination)
• (3) Quality of Experience
• Qualifying experience must be at a level comparable to pharmacy experience at the next lower level
• Experience as a Graduate Pharmacist is creditable provided the candidate was used as a professional pharmacist (under supervision) and subsequently passed the appropriate licensure examination GS-13 (a) Experience: In addition to the GS-12 requirements - must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level
• (b) Assignments
• Candidates at this grade level are to be in one of the assignments listed below
• For all assignments above the full performance level - the higher level duties must consist of significant scope - administrative independence - complexity (difficulty) and range of variety as described in this standard at the specified grade level and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time
• Clinical Pharmacy Specialist
• The clinical pharmacy specialist (CPS) functions at the highest level of clinical practice - works independently under their scope of practice as defined by the individual medical center to directly care for patients
• A CPS plays a defined role in budgetary execution and serves as a mid-level provider who functions to initiate - modify or discontinue medication therapy and as a consultant for intensive medication therapy management services
• This includes - but is not limited to - the following: designing - implementing - assessing - monitoring and documenting therapeutic plans utilizing the most effective - least toxic and most economical medication treatments
• helping achieve positive patient centric outcomes through direct and indirect interactions with patients - providers - and interdisciplinary teams in assigned areas
• performing physical assessments
• and ordering laboratory and other tests to help determine efficacy and toxicity of medication therapy
• Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following KSAs: a
• Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisions
• b
• Expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for their program area
• c
• Ability to solve problems - coordinate and organize responsibilities to maximize outcomes in their program area or area of clinical expertise
• d
• Expert knowledge of a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice or specialty area of pharmacy
• e
• Advanced skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies - including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters

Duties

• VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn_ickNBEws Duties Include: Provides clinical pharmacy services to Behavioral Health Clinic - Mental Health Clinic patients - and other medical center patients by on-site consultations and direct patient management
• Examples of such duties are as follows: Assist and be the contact pharmacist for all medication issues related to mental health services
• Provides consultations to physicians and other healthcare professionals daily and provides drug information - observations on patient response to therapy - and appropriate recommendations regarding treatment alternatives or additional interventions to maximize patient care outcomes taking into consideration choice of therapy - safety - efficacy - and pharmacoeconomics
• Provide pharmaceutical services to focus on therapeutic drug monitoring
• Analyze medication regimens to ensure the most effective - least toxic - and most economical treatment plan
• Understands and applies the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic differences in the geriatric population Interview patients to ascertain significant past medical history and medication history
• Evaluate medication regimens for appropriateness - drug interactions - therapeutic duplications - non-compliance and adverse drug events
• Performs medication reconciliation
• Document all clinical activities - update problem lists - and update medication allergy information in the medical record
• May order laboratory tests or other tests as needed to monitor drug therapy effectiveness and safety
• May refer to appropriate services as needed via consultations
• Designs and/or participates in quality reviews involving drug therapy or clinical pharmacy functions Coordinates - develops - manages and controls the pharmacy practice programs for Behavioral Health/Mental Health Service Line
• This includes the clozapine program - pharmacy student experiential learning - and other applicable items in accordance with scope of practice
• Work Schedule: Monday- Friday 08:00- 4:30pm - some closing shifts - weekends - holidays
• Telework: Ad-hoc Bargaining Unit: Yes Functional Statement #: 00000