Summary The GS-8 pharmacy technician serves and provides specialized functions in controlled substances, automation and telephone support. They must demonstrate independent technical judgment, as well as comprehensive working knowledge of the most complex or difficult practices and procedures. They will need to be able to independently gather, evaluate, and analyze patient specific information per established protocols, and discern when to bring problems to the attention of the assigned pharmacist. Responsibilities Duties include but are not limited to: Basic: Filling non-controlled substance prescriptions, performing 72- hour vault and ATC inventories, replenishing outpatient pharmacy automation, processing pharmacy consults, answering phones, helping patients at the window, and packaging medications for mail out. Enhances Pharmacy quality improvement/quality control by participating in process action teams, reporting medication errors, and continually seeking ways to improve the service provided to patients and other customers. Strong customer service skills and be able to assist patients over the telephone and the window with prescription issues. Administrative and Clerical: Provide clinic support through faxing and mailing, preparation of teaching materials, and filing. Triage telephone calls from patients, family members, and/or caregivers to address a variety of issues, evaluate the problem, and provide an appropriate solution or refer the problem expeditiously to the pharmacist when the problem is beyond the technician's level of knowledge or expertise. Provide patient education on pharmacy topics including prescription refills, patient rights and responsibilities, and education. Evaluate and analyze the workflow to coordinate activities in support of clinical pharmacy specialists including notify the clinical pharmacy specialist when clinic access is limited or if an individual patient cannot be scheduled within the mandated time frame. Clinical: Receive and triage lab results faxed from the community. Triage clinical telephone calls. Document communication with patients in the computerized patient record system. Notify pharmacist of issues related to prescription duplication, medication compliance, allergies or adverse reactions, and INR's out of therapeutic range which are identified through patient communication or medical record review. Notify pharmacist when complications related to medication therapy are identified, including bleeding or thromboembolic events or when a patient reports changes to medications or significant changes to diet or health status. Quality Improvement: Monitor clinic records for patients who fail to show for scheduled appointments and initiate reminders to ensure continuum of care. Evaluate and analyze data from clinic databases and dashboards to generate periodic quality assessment reports for submission to the pharmacy program manager. Controlled Substance Duties: Prepares and fills controlled substance outpatient orders from the central pharmacy vault utilizing the controlled substances software and automated dispensing equipment. Participates and interacts with the Controlled Substance Inspectors when conducting the monthly-unannounced inventory. Prepares report for Pharmacy Supervisor and Controlled Substance Coordinator when discrepancies are identified. Analyses discrepancies to determine root causes and determines appropriate corrective action following established standard operating procedures. Demonstrates knowledge of the laws, regulations and policies pertaining to controlled substances and follows all local, VACO and DEA requirements, and other pertinent state and federal regulations. Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, rotating day and evening tours, including weekends and holidays (exact tours will be discussed during interview) Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade). Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year) Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience. Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child. Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66. Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement) Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 00000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Requirements 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. You may be required to serve a trial period. 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). 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. Pharmacy Technician candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). Experience and Education. 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). 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-08 Experience. Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level 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: (a) PTCB as a CPhT. OR (b) 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-08 assignments and meet any additional KSAs for the assignment, if indicated: Comprehensive knowledge of concepts, principles, methodology and policies in a specialized area or section of pharmacy (such as sterile compounding, controlled substances, automation, clinical pharmacy, contact center, etc.) Note: See Specialized Area.in the Definitions Section. Skill in training and orienting new and existing pharmacy facility employees and students on proper policies and procedures. Ability to evaluate, analyze and coordinate workflow and work activities within a specialized area or section of the pharmacy. Preferred Experience: Three years of pharmacy technician experience compounding sterile products in a hospital pharmacy setting. Three years of experience using outpatient pharmacy equipment to include experience with Automated Dispensing Cabinets (Omnicell or Pyxis), outpatient pharmacy robotic systems, or TPN compounding devices (BAXA, Pinnacle, etc). 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-8. Physical Requirements: Moderate lifting and carrying (15-44 lbs.), reaching above shoulder, use of fingers, standing, repeated bending, near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4, ability to distinguish basic colors, and mental and emotional stability. Environmental factors include constant noise, extensive use of mouse/keyboard, working closely with others, and working alone. 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 or 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. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. 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. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
