Clarification from the agency

This position in open to current, permanent employees of the Oscar G. Johnson VA Medical Center only.

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This position is located in the Pharmacy Service of the Oscar G. Johnson VAMC, Iron Mountain, MI. The Program Manager manages all Compounded Sterile Preparations (CSP) and Non-Sterile Preparations and Hazardous Drug (HD) operations for the Pharmacy Service. This includes compliance oversight of all pharmacists, technicians, trainees, and other supportive pharmacy personnel involved in sterile and non-sterile compounding and/or hazardous drug processing or management. The Program Manager also manages the pharmacy side of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program and serves as the Antimicrobial Stewardship Pharmacy Champion for the facility.

Major Duties include, but are not limited to:

• Reviews and updates sterile and non-sterile compounding policies and procedures.
• Directs and oversees activities of all assigned operational, technical and professional personnel, with an emphasis on assuring that all applicable compliance requirements are met.
• Maintenance of all program required processes and documentation, to include assigned drug distribution-associated recordkeeping, competency assessments, documentation logs, personnel and process testing, cleaning logs.
• Serves as a member of the VA Facility CSP Advisory Committee.
• Serves as a liaison between Pharmacy Service and other health care providers.
• Coordinates quality assurance monitoring and evaluation involved with compounded sterile preparation and hazardous drug management operations.
• Ensures the competency of Pharmacy personnel in the preparation of and handling of CSPs through initial, competency assessments, annual training, and standard testing.
• Maintains environmental control of the compounding areas and cleanroom.
• Serves as the service level representative for any pharmacy contractual agreements with vendors for certification, cleaning etc.
• Ensures that results of all Action Levels from sampling of both viable and non-viable airborne particulate and other sample testing are reviewed by the Pharmacy Management, Infection Prevention and Industrial Hygiene Services with appropriate corrective actions.
• Provides education and training of all trainees and employees specific to CSP and Hazardous Drug Management processes
• Aids in antimicrobial formulary management. Responsible for assisting in the development of policies, procedures, and training relating to antimicrobial therapies.
• Assists audits, evaluations, or other studies concerning utilization of drugs, especially antimicrobials, under the auspices of Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee and Quality Board Committee.
• Prepare bulletin, newsletters, policy memos or other forms of communication to inform providers, nurses, pharmacists, and others on the appropriate utilization of drugs, especially antimicrobials.
• Evaluates the assigned medication distribution system and recommends and coordinates changes and improvements.
• Provides the necessary technical knowledge and assistance as required to support the inpatient and outpatient pharmacy operations.
• Reviews cases of targeted antibiotic therapy for appropriateness, adequacy of dosing, and for cost effectiveness. Incumbent will document significant findings, interventions, and recommendations.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• Subject to a background/security investigation
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

Citizenship. Citizen of the United States. (Noncitizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g, this part.)

English Language Proficiency. Pharmacists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d).

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/.
OR
Must be a graduate of a foreign pharmacy degree program that meets 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). (DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED)
Note: Applicants 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).

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.

In addition to the basic requirements above, applicants must meet the following grade requirements.

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE GS-13 LEVEL: You must have at least one (1) year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-12) or equivalent, which is directly related to the Clinical Pharmacy Specialist position. A clinical pharmacy specialist (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:

1. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and management decisions.
2. Expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for their program area.
3. Ability to solve problems, coordinate and organize responsibilities to maximize outcomes in their program area or area of clinical expertise.
4. Expert knowledge of a specialized area of clinical pharmacy practice or specialty area of pharmacy.
5. Advanced skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, résumé, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.