Clinical Specialty Pharmacist

Banner Health

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Banner MD Anderson combines Banner Health, one of the country’s largest nonprofit hospital systems, with MD Anderson, internationally renowned for its cancer treatment and research, to deliver unprecedented levels of cancer care in Arizona. Innovation and highly trained staff. Our Pharmacy team members play a critical role in ensuring the best care for our patients. Join a nationally recognized leader that values excellence and begin making a difference in people’s lives. Apply today! This is a full time position and the shifts are Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm and 9:00am - 5:30pm. Banner Pharmacy Services is a recognized leader in healthcare and trusted partner in proactively providing innovative pharmacy services through excellence in integration, care coordination, medication management and services to make a difference in people's lives. Clinical Pharmacy Services is responsible for the management of the Banner formulary, development of standardized system wide clinical pharmacy services, and management of adverse drug event preventions. Clinical Pharmacy Services provides collaborative drug therapy management and educational interventions in patient care to optimize medication therapy, improve outcomes, promote wellness, and disease prevention. As a division, Banner Pharmacy services provides excellent patient care across our entire continuum through convenient access, improved medication outcomes and innovative pharmacy practices. POSITION SUMMARY This position provides pharmaceutical care to patients, serves as a resource and drug information specialist to medical, pharmacy, nursing staff and allied healthcare providers. Performs comprehensive clinical assessments and collaborates with the integrated healthcare team to provide quality patient care. Must demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to provide care appropriate to the age and disease state of the patients being served. Must possess the ability to assess data reflective of the patient’s status, interpret the appropriate information needed to identify each patient’s requirements and provide pharmaceutical care based on those needs. Accountable for on-going evaluation and documentation of all components of pharmaceutical care delivered to patients. Oversees the activities of the pharmacy technicians, coordinating workflow and may, when appropriate perform the final check of medications prior to being dispensed. Conducts educational activities, applies principles of performance improvement, and may participate in Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee activities or Collaborative Drug Therapy Agreements as appropriate. Adheres to local, state, and federal laws regarding the profession of pharmacy practice.

Requirements

A degree in Pharmacy from an accredited College of Pharmacy.
Current and unrestricted pharmacy licensure in the applicable state of practice within 90 days of hire date.
Incumbents in Arizona are also required to provide the AZ Board of Pharmacy Wallet Card at time of hire.
Must possess good organizational, problem solving and computer skills.
Must possess good written and verbal communication skills for interfacing with all levels of staff, Physicians and other contacts.
Must have knowledge of medication management software, particularly pharmacy system software, Microsoft applications and automated dispensing systems.

Nice To Haves

Completion of an accredited pharmacy residency program or previous clinical pharmacy experience is preferred.
Additional related education and/or experience preferred.

Responsibilities

Critically evaluates medication therapy and makes recommendations to improve patient medication regimens. Ensures appropriate and cost effective drug therapy. Areas of focus may include but are not limited to evaluating adherence, evaluating and addressing drug-drug interactions, drug-food interactions, contraindicated medications, inappropriate therapeutic regimens, adverse drug reactions, pharmacokinetics, disease state management and rational effective medication regimens. Accurately and completely documents patient assessment data and clinical interventions.
Functions as a therapeutic consultant in areas that may include rational and appropriate use of medications, medication adherence, clinical pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, disease state management and nutrition.
May participate in Pharmacy and Therapeutic Committee (P&T) activities, evaluate and recommend medications for formulary inclusion, and prepares Formulary evaluations for P&T consideration, as appropriate. May participate in the Quality Council activities including quarterly meetings to discuss quality concerns to improve patient safety and workflow. Quality Council members work with the Clinical Oversight body for approval on quality related process improvement projects.
Applies the principles of continuous quality improvement consistent with job expectations. Incorporates quality improvement principles into other activities and projects (i.e. data collection, documentation). Develops criteria for drug use evaluations, medication use indicators and disease-based evaluations. Provides oversight and assists with the development and implementation of evidence-based medication guidelines/protocols. Designs and implements medication monitoring guidelines and programs for both staff and clinical pharmacists.
The Clinical Pharmacist assesses the patient at the initiation of drug therapy, develops a patient care plan and drug monitoring regimen and monitors the patient according to the care plan throughout the course of therapy. Verifies medication orders in the computer system for appropriateness and accuracy and dispenses medications in an accurate and timely manner in appropriate quantities based on stability, compatibility of the drug and specific needs of the patient. Documents in the patient clinical record all recommendations and interventions communicated to the physician.
Coordinates the drug preparation work of pharmacy technician and checks the accuracy of that work according to literature guidelines.
Communicates with the patient, physician, nursing staff, pharmacists and other members of the health care team regarding medication treatment, patient status, response to therapy and clinical objectives to ensure clinical outcome is met. Monitors patient response and documents interventions as appropriate.
The Clinical Pharmacist will also be required to take after hours calls as indicated.
Participates in all aspects of medication use, including (1) selection, procurement and storage, (2) ordering or prescribing, (3) dispensing, (4) administering and (5) monitoring of all medications utilized. Internal customers may include Patients, Nurses, Licensed Independent Practitioners, Nursing Directors, Department Directors, Administrators and other health care team members for the purpose of integrating services, improving patient care and ensuring effective communication systems. External customers may include local, state, and national pharmacy organizations, Joint Commission, State Board of Pharmacy, colleagues and peers, educational institutions and pharmaceutical representatives.