Summary

The Clinical Pharmacy Practitioner (CPP) serves as an advanced practice provider with prescriptive authority under an approved Scope of Practice. The primary responsibility is to coordinate and provide comprehensive medication management (CMM) for patients requiring pain management as well as Pain Management Opioid Safety Program (PMOP) administrative duties.

Duties

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The duties and responsibilities of the Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, include but are not limited to the following:

Clinical (Pain Management):

• Provides clinical pharmacy services to patients on opioid therapy through on-site consultation and direct patient management.
• Possesses knowledge of potential side effects of pain medications and their treatment and management strategies.
• Assesses the potential for pain medication non-compliance and develops strategies for patients that are non-compliant or exhibiting signs of aberrant behavior.
• Provides recommendations to pain team provider for tapering, withdrawal, and dosing of pain medications.
• Promotes rational pain management strategies utilizing current VA resources and develops pain management policies, when needed. 6) Provides pharmaceutical services to focus on therapeutic drug monitoring.
• Analyzes 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.
• Works collaboratively with other clinic providers to provide pharmaceutical care to patients as outlined by best evidence, VANIHCS procedures, and scope of practice.

Program Management:

• Serves as a core member of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP).
• Conducts prospective audit and feedback on antimicrobial prescribing for appropriateness, guideline adherence, and opportunities for de-escalation.
• Reviews cultures, microbiology results, and antimicrobial use patterns to identify optimization opportunities.
• Assists with therapeutic drug monitoring (e.g., vancomycin, aminoglycosides) and supports diagnostic stewardship efforts.
• Contributes ASP data to required local, VISN, and national reporting platforms.
• Provides ASP education to medical staff, trainees, and interdisciplinary teams.
• Supports development and implementation of facility-specific antimicrobial guidelines and pathways.
• Effectively directs drug therapy to conform to the national VA formulary.
• Works with other health care practitioners to ensure compliance with national, VISN, and local initiatives.
• Acts as a liaison between the pain management and antimicrobial stewardship programs and Pharmacy Service.

Educational:

• Provides academic detailing services consistent with PBM and VHA Academic Detailing Program standards.
• Conducts one-on-one and group outreach sessions to prescribers on evidence based topics.
• Utilizes audit and feedback data to tailor provider education and practice recommendations.
• Maintains proficiency in academic detailing communication techniques, educational materials, and PBM messaging.
• Participates in training, national calls, and continuous quality improvement activities related to Academic Detailing.
• Assists patients on the proper use and care of their medications.
• Provides pertinent drug information to physicians and allied health personnel through the use of seminars, formal and informal consultations, conferences, and lectures

Administrative:

• Serves as a voting member of appropriate committees, such as the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee or Pain Committee.
• Serves on or acts as a consultant to professional committees.
• Supports facility Pain Management, Opioid Safety, and Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PMOP) requirements, including monitoring opioid safety dashboards, STORM outreach, naloxone distribution, and opioid risk mitigation strategies.
• Assists in tracking and validating national PMOP quality metrics and supports performance improvement initiatives.
• Collaborates with PMOP Coordinator, Pain Committee, Primary Care, Behavioral Health, and Pharmacy leadership to standardize opioid safety processes.
• Aids in policy development related to safe opioid prescribing, chronic pain management, and controlled substance monitoring.

Supervisory Controls: The incumbent is accountable to the Chief of Pharmacy Service, or their designee, for professional licensure and competency. However, daily activities should require minimal supervision, and problems should be managed independently. The incumbent uses initiative in planning and carrying out work requirements according to established scope of practice and care coordination agreement and in alignment with policies and procedures. The CPS provider's primary responsibilities are to provide care coordination and comprehensive medication management for patients treated within the assigned area(s)

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am -4:00pm Eastern Standard Time

Telework: Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 93117-0

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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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 identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• 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

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:
  
  • (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. (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 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. 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.

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.

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.

*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 Clinical Pharmacy Specialist:

Experience:

In addition to the GS-12 requirements, must have 1-year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level.

Clinical Pharmacist Specialist (GS-13): 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.

In addition, Pharmacists assigned to this position must also demonstrate the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs):

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

Preferred Experience: PGY1/PGY2 preferably within VA or experience in primary care medication management

Reference: For more information o