Clinical Pharmacist - Emergency Department

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Omaha (NE); On-site; USD 90,000 - 115,000; Full time

Job summary

The Omaha VA Medical Center, part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, seeks a Clinical Pharmacist to join the Emergency Department. The incumbent will deliver comprehensive pharmaceutical care across Ambulatory Care, Acute Care, or Community Living Center settings as assigned.

Applicants must meet licensure, English proficiency, and ACPE-approved degree requirements. Preference for candidates with inpatient experience; non-licensed graduates may be considered for temporary appointments

Qualifications

• US citizenship or eligibility
• English language proficiency required
• ACPE-accredited Pharm.D. or BS Pharmacy; foreign grads may need FPGEC+TOEFL

Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive pharmaceutical care in Ambulatory Care, Acute Care or CLC as assigned
• Collaborate with healthcare team to optimize drug therapy and monitor patient outcomes
• Ensure compliance with pharmacy laws, safety standards, and VA policies

Skills

Professional pharmacy practice

Oral & written communication

Pharmacy laws & regs

Drug therapy monitoring

Education

ACPE-accredited Pharm.D.

BS Pharmacy

FPGEC/TOEFL (foreign grads)

Job description

This Clinical Pharmacist position is located within the Emergency Department at the Omaha VA Medical Center. The incumbent is responsible for performing comprehensive pharmaceutical care in Ambulatory Care, Acute Care or Community Living Center (CLC) setting as assigned. 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.
• 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: [phone], 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)
  • 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).
• 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.
  • Exception. 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 pharmacist. For grade levels above the GS-11, the candidate must be licensed.

NOTE: Individuals who have or have had multiple licenses and had any such license revoked for professional misconduct, professional incompetence or substandard care, or who surrendered such license after receiving written notice of potential termination of such license by the State for professional misconduct, professional incompetence, or substandard care, are not eligible for appointment to the position unless such revoked or surrendered license is fully restored (38 U.S.C. § 7402(f)). Effective November 30, 1999, this is a requirement for employment. This requirement does not apply to licensed pharmacists on VA rolls as of that date, provided they maintain continuous appointment and are not disqualified for employment by any subsequent revocations or voluntary surrenders of State license, registration or certification. 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-12 Clinical Pharmacist

• Experience or Education: In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must meet one of the following:
  • 1. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, GS-11, or
  • 2. Completion of an ACPE-accredited Pharm.D. program. AND

• Demonstrated Knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs): Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs):
  • 1. Knowledge of professional pharmacy practice.
  • 2. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to both patients and health care staff.
  • 3. Knowledge of laws, regulations, and accreditation standards related to the distribution and control of scheduled and non-scheduled drugs and pharmacy security.
  • 4. Skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters.

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.

(4) Part-time Experience. Part-time experience as a professional pharmacist is credited according to its relationship to the full-time workweek. For example, a pharmacist employed 20 hours a week, or on a 1/2-time basis, would receive 1 full-time workweek of credit for each 2 weeks of service.

Preferred Experience: Experience in inpatient hospital setting or successful completion of a PGY1 Residency (within the last 3 years)

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-12.

Physical Requirements: Ability to distinguish basic colors. 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.