Summary

The Pharmacy lnformaticist is a licensed pharmacist and serves as a Pharmacy Informatics Specialist for the entire James H. Quillen VA Medical Center (JHQVAMC) who must possess a wide range of medication knowledge pertaining to route, indication, interactions, formulation, recommended dosages and basic pharmacology as well as healthcare information systems processing medication information.

Duties

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VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn_ickNBEws

The Pharmacy lnformaticist is responsible for data collection, assessment, design, integration, modification, maintenance and analysis, data management services, networking, and the federal electronic health record (EHR) for Pharmacy Service to assist and support Pharmacy Service managerial decision making. This individual coordinates the development and implementation of all pertinent information applications to support clinical practice, operations, administration, educational development, research initiatives and Pharmacy Service EHR use to anticipate and meet the pharmaceutical needs of internal and external customers and mission, vision, and goals of JHQVAMC and VISN 9. The duties for the Facility Program Manager-Pharmacy Informatics will include (but not limited to):

Clinical:

• The program manager provides patient care that is appropriate to the cognitive, emotional, and chronological maturation needs of the adult and/or geriatric patient.
• Drug Therapy Monitoring - Health system drug therapy monitoring is conducted pursuant to any number of internal JHQVAMC and external Veterans Health Administration Pharmacy Benefits Management (VHAPBM) and patient safety efforts to track, assess, trouble-shoot, investigate, and maintain all medication use processes within the health system.

Education:

• Medical Center Staff Education: The program manager is responsible for providing the medical center staff with accurate and comprehensive information about medications and their use and shall serve as the department's primary resource for meeting its drug information responsibilities.
• Incumbent participates in national meetings, conferences, and programs that provide exposure and insight into pharmacy applications.

Administrative/Supervisor:

• The program manager is a member of the pharmacy management team and is responsible for developing, supplying, and interpreting comprehensive computer generated data on a regular basis to the pharmacy management team for planning and evaluating pharmacy operations and for use in reviewing pharmacy service program activities efficiency and effectiveness. The specialist will have service decision making authority and must understand the needs, desires, and proposed direction of service management.
• Incumbent assists the supervisory staff in developing manual workload processing systems to be used as a backup when the EHR systems are unavailable. These backup systems must include provisions for fast, efficient input of all data kept manually while the system was down.

Program Management:

• The incumbent is an expert in this field and must have a thorough knowledge of all EHR pharmacy programs, EHR service-integrated programs, the graphical user interface (GUI) employed by VHA, Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS), BarCode Medication Administration (BCMA), VistA and VA FileMan, Microsoft Structured Query Language (SQL) Server, Microsoft Power Bl, Pyramid Analytics, VHA Support Service Center Capital Assets (VSSC), Oracle/Cerner, and all related data visualization and dashboards created locally, by the VISN, or national.
• Collects, investigates, and triages operational problems experienced by Pharmacy Service staff. Escalates issues to appropriate EHR or Ol&T office for assistance and remediation. Submits new service requests as appropriate.
• Incumbent collaborates with Informatics Managers from other services when required to address problems that cross service lines. Incumbent collaborates with Informatics Managers from other stations when necessary to assist them in areas where JHQVAMC has more expertise.
• Incumbent is involved in Informatics issues beyond the scope of pharmacy packages varying from innovative FileMan and SQL use - knowing the data file structure and being able to extract data from databases and order it into meaningful and presentable reports.

Internal Control:

• Incumbent installs, troubleshoots and otherwise maintains Drug Accountability software and the Controlled Substances Package.
• Incumbent performs balance adjustments necessary to keep the Controlled Substance Package in order and completes prescription deletions that are necessary to maintain an accurate patient prescription profile.
• Incumbent compares physical inventory information to the computer-generated inventories from Drug Accountability, investigating apparent discrepancies to ensure that they are real and provides reports of significant discrepancy to the Chief for followup action.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 7:45 am-4:30 pm

Compressed/Flexible: Not available

Telework: Not available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 61603-F

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

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 [redacted]; phone: [redacted], 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 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.
• English Language Proficiency: Pharmacists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d).

In addition to the basic requirements listed above, the below qualification requirements must be met.

Grade Determinations: GS-13 Facility Program Manager (Pharmacy Informatics)

Experience. Must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level that includes: (Must be documented on your resume).

Manages all aspects of a distinct program to include policy development, quality resources and specialty functions unique to the program to optimize cost effectiveness (budget) and patient outcomes. Coordinates a single program area of a complex pharmacy operation, or multiple program areas within a facility to develop, organize, manage, and control complex pharmacy programs. Develops, organizes, coordinates and manages single or multiple program areas within the medical facility; this may include a single program area at multiple facilities.The Program Manager title is reserved for those individuals who have one or more of the following:

• Supervisory responsibilities for various sections within Pharmacy Service; a complex program requiring coordination of multiple locations such as medical center care facilities, Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs), rural health, telemedicine, etc;
• Specialized areas of a complex nature such as nuclear pharmacy, quality assurance, pharmacy informatics, clinical applications coordinator, Home Based Primary Care, pharmacoeconomist or liaison pharmacist duties requiring the coordination of processes with other medical facilities or VISNs.

Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following Full Performance KSAs:

• Ability to communicate orally and in writing to persuade and influence clinical and 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 a 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.

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: Applicants must be able to perform the following duties: light lifting; walking or standing for up to 8-hours; must possess visual acuity to read typed print; keen hearing (aids permitted).The loss or impairment of a specific function may be compensated by satisfactory use of prosthesis.

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.