Clarification from the agency

Only open to current permanent employees of the Minneapolis VA Health Care System (MVAHCS) to include the Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs), and the Minneapolis Veterans Canteen Service. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

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The incumbent serves as the Pharmacy ADPAC and has primary responsibility for activities in the VISTA drug file in collaboration with the pharmacy informatics team. Additionally, the position serves as a Contracting Officer Representative for Pharmacy Service. The incumbent functions as staffing requirements dictate assisting the pharmacy management team in providing optimal pharmaceutical care and timely customer service in accordance with the mission, vision and goals of the Pharmacy and the Medical Center.

The incumbent performs the full range of program coordination in their specialized area of pharmacy, requiring independent technical judgement and expertise in complex areas of pharmacy practice that have specific laws, significant regulatory requirements and quality/safety standards. The incumbent will organize, coordinate and manage single or multiple programs under the delegation of pharmacy supervisors or Associate Chiefs. The incumbent must have expert understanding of regulatory and quality standards for the complex program area and manage all aspects of compliance with these standards with limited input from pharmacy supervisor(s). This position may be assigned as a coordinator in areas requiring detailed regulatory oversight and record keeping in procurement, automation, informatics, and contracting.

FUNCTIONS OF THE POSITION:
The duties and responsibilities of the Lead Procurement and Informatics Pharmacy Technician include but are not limited to the following:

A. Pharmacy Informatics
1. Assists the Pharmacy Informatics Supervisor with installation of VISTA/CPRS patches and associated file management to ensure set-up maximizes patient safety and efficiency of operations in collaboration with the pharmacy informatics team.
2. Responsible for pharmacy electronic new user request entries, including assigning menus, keys, and mail groups.
3. Utilizes extensive knowledge to analyze pharmacy processes and ensure that software package design complements patient safety, drug interaction reporting, and drug file accuracy. Identifies and initiates the implementation of changes to improve performance or correct problems.
4. Represents Pharmacy Service on all ADPAC issues, as well as other committees or workgroups deemed necessary by pharmacy management.
5. Assists the pharmacy informatics team and the Chief of Pharmacy in accessing, compiling, and assessing data, reports, and information as related to medication use at the Minneapolis VAHCS.

B. Pharmaceutical Purchasing and Distribution
1. Manages the reverse distribution program for the pharmacy service, including tracking of reimbursements. Ensures expired medications are removed from stock and processes them for safe removal, according to VHA Directives and standard operating procedures.
2. Serve as an approving official for pharmacy service, delegated by the VA National Acquisition Center (NAC) while maintaining annual training requirements.
3. Assists procurement technician staff with ordering requirements of pharmaceuticals, specialty, and supply items through pharmacy prime vendors multi complex accounts or other mandatory sources. Responsible for adherence to federal contracts and compliance with federal regulations regarding open market, ensuring inventory control through perpetual evaluation.
4. Assists in determining ordering intervals and stock levels appropriate to meet changes in formulary, brand to AB rated generic drugs, contract changes, conversions, new drug indications including backorders and seasonal changes.
5. Ensures procurement technicians are ordering pharmaceuticals within established VA ordering guidelines, policies, and procedures within inventory management specialized area with the understanding of proper budget utilization.

C. Administrative Duties
1. Applies safe handling when working with hazardous materials and can reference the Material Safety Data sheets.
2. Works and communicates effectively with others while remaining courteous, tactful, and understanding when interacting with others, even in potentially difficult/volatile situations.
3. Effectively organizes workload, solves problems, and achieves established goals.

Customer Service
1. Relationships with management, co-workers, patients and the general public are consistently courteous, respectful and cooperative in nature.
2. Employee will display a cooperative attitude and will effectively work together to implement the organization's mission and goals.
3. Employee will ensure productivity is maintained at the established level for the program for which he/she is responsible.

Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday - Friday, 7:00am - 3:30pm
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized
Telework: If available, Ad-Hoc ONLY
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 000000
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized

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.
• 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.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

All requirements must be met at the time of the announcement closing.

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 or Experience.
  • None required.
  • 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:
  • Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB), Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT). OR
  • National Healthcareer Association (NHA), Certified Pharmacy Technician (ExCPT).
• Grandfathering Provision. Pharmacy technicians employed in VHA 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. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements in this standard but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:
  • Employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level or changed to lower grade within the occupation but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.
  • Employees in an occupation that requires a licensure/certification/ registration only at higher grade levels must meet the licensure/ certification/registration requirement before they can be promoted to those higher grade levels.
  • Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
  • Employees who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re-entry to the occupation.
  • Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation.
• Foreign Education. To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must be deemed at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. program by a private organization specializing in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials.
• English Language Proficiency. Pharmacy Technician candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

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:

Pharmacy Technician, GS-10:

• Experience. Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-09) and demonstrate the KSAs below.
• Certification. For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either:
  • PTCB as a CPhT. OR
  • NHA as a ExCPT.
• Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs for ALL GS-10 assignments and meet any additional KSAs for the assignment, if indicated:
  • Ability to analyze data for performance improvement projects, workload analysis and statistical reports.
  • Ability to prepare for and maintain special accreditations, inspections and reviews (e.g., The Joint Commission, Office of Inspector General, American Society of Health System Pharmacists, controlled substances inspections).
  • Ability to solve problems and implement corrective actions to maximize outcomes in their program area.
• Additional Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs), Pharmacy Technician (Procurement/Inventory).
  • Expert knowledge of budgetary and pharmacy procurement operating procedures such as, but not limited to, budget reconciliation, annual wall to wall inventory, sterile compounding and service contracts.
  • Skill in managing supply problems such as back orders, interchangeability of products during shortages or finding suitable replacement products.
  • Skill in monitoring the quality of input and output of automated/perpetual medication inventory management systems.
  • Ability to write policies and procedures for pharmaceutical procurement, inventory management and contracting processes.
  • Ability to develop contracting acquisition packages with all necessary required documents including, but not limited to, market research, independent Government cost estimate, statement of work/performance work statement, quotes, proof of funding, etc.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

Physical Requirements: You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.

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, resume, 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.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.