Summary

The pharmacist will serve as the subject matter expert in electronic health record (EHR) issues, workflows and mitigations at all points of care (inpatient and outpatient) within the VA Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System including all divisions and their associated community-based outpatient clinics. The incumbent will triage reports of EHR issues, ensure issues are routed appropriately for resolution, provide troubleshooting and validation support, and communicate resolution outcomes.

Duties

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Major duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Pharmacy Program Management - Electronic Health Record (EHR) Solution Specialist: The Program Manager will support clinical pharmacy services and is directly responsible for monitoring and managing related EHR issues, tickets and workflows.
  
  • Ensuring that the Pharmacy Management Team is informed of all administrative or technical issues that may impact Pharmacy programs. The specialist may also be required to report to various committees and/or work groups.
  • Managing all tickets placed for the electronic health record and will track and trace these tickets through to completion.
  • Provide updates on electronic health records at any requested time.
  • Build relationships to facilitate communication and tracking of tickets. Ticket scope will include those directly under the pharmacy domain as well as issues related to medication safety and medication ordering that have downstream impact to pharmacy (i.e.,. Infusions).
  • Receive and triage reports of EHR issues and route to the appropriate pathway for resolution.
  • Act as a point of contact for the pharmacy department in relation to the EHR. Serves as the subject matter expert on previous EHR issues, workflows and mitigations.
  • Coordinates, monitors, develops and evaluates the activities of the Pharmacy EHR system.
  • Planning and development of programs consistent with the goals of the Pharmacy Service.
  • Ensuring ongoing compliance with medication management standards set forth by Joint Commission, FDA and OIG. Will document and monitor Serious Adverse Events (SAE), reporting through VA-ADERS and any related Patient Safety Reports through JPSR.
  • Coordinate and facilitate completion of Pharmacy Informatics-related projects and tasks amongst applicable staff.
• Administrative: The Electronic Health Record (EHR) Program Solution Consultant (Ticket Manager) will provide subject matter expertise for all EHR ticketing, workflow and mitigation strategies.
  
  • Receives and triages reports of EHR issues related to pharmacy which may include collaboration with other VISN and facility service lines.
  • Submits and routes issues through the appropriate pathway towards resolution.
  • Serves as point of contact and liaison with the EHR vendor, National EHR program and the facility for troubleshooting issues and validation of resolutions.
  • Serves as the primary VA point of contact for pharmacy EHR tickets and submits tickets on behalf of a VA facility when appropriate. Scope of tickets includes issues directly under the pharmacy domain (in the EHR software ticketing package) as well as domains related to medication safety (in the Joint Patient Safety Report software) and ancillary issues related to medication ordering with downstream impact to pharmacy (e.g., infusions).
  • Investigates, tracks, and manages all pharmacy-related tickets.
  • Triages issues out of the pharmacy/medication use system scope to appropriate point of contact. Serves as subject matter expert on EHR issues, workflows, and mitigations.
  • Reports the status of programs and suggested solutions directly to the VISN Pharmacy EHR Program Manager.
  • Responsible for communicating resolutions or updates resulting from reported issues.
  • Serves as a Readiness Specialist for major system upgrades and modifications.
  • Works with Cerner and facility staff to replicate issues, identify mitigation strategies needed including the compilation of configuration changes and Joint Sustainment and Adoption Board (JSaAB) requests.
  • Participates in the planning and development of programs in collaboration with the VISN Pharmacy EHRM team, consistent with the goals of National and VISN EHR Programs.
  • Participates in meetings with various Pharmacy and other services line leads to provide updates on issues as they relate to the EHR.
  • Develops process improvement strategies for pharmacy issue reporting and resolution and leads the performance improvement process.
• Education:
  
  • Assists in the training of pharmacy employees, pharmacy residents, and Pharm.D. students assigned in coordination with supervisor.
  • Collaborates with the Pharmacy Management Team on pharmacy training and development to promote the learning experience and improve the performance of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmacy residents, and pharmacy students.
  • Participates in the ongoing professional practice evaluation process to confirm the quality of care delivered to veterans, ensure patient safety, and identify areas for additional education and/or process improvement.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:30pm

Telework: Ad-hoc

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #:000000

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.
• NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.
• 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;
• 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.
• 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 [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.)
  • 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 InternetBased 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.

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:

Facility Program Manager, GS-13:

• Experience: In addition to the GS-12 requirements, must have 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-12).
  
  • GS-12 level experience includes:
    
    • Knowledge of professional pharmacy practice.
    • Ability to communicate orally and in writing to both patients and health care staff.
    • Knowledge of laws, regulations, and accreditation standards related to the distribution and control of scheduled and non-scheduled drugs and pharmacy security.
    • Skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters.
  
  Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following:
  
  • 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. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-13

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.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application.

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

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.