Pharmacy Technician II

TX-HHSC-DSHS-DFPS • Austin, TX

3d

About The Position

Come work in an environment where we truly value and respect those we serve and believe in the mission that all people can achieve a higher level of wellness and independence.

The state supported living centers serve people with intellectual and developmental disabilities who are medically fragile or who have behavioral problems. The centers provide campus-based direct services and supports at 13 centers located throughout the state. Learn About Our State Supported Living Centers

If you are looking for a place to work where you can establish a career that is filled with purpose, this is the job for you!

Performs highly complex (senior-level) pharmaceutical assistance work. Work involves pre-packaging and labeling unit-dose and multiple dose medication orders, medication room inspections, assisting the pharmacist in various technical aspects of preparation of non-routine medication orders for passes, furloughs and discharges, filling medication carts, maintaining required medication stock for after-hours dispensing, performing courier and drug delivery duties, environmental inspections, ordering and receiving pharmaceuticals, monthly and annual inventory of pharmaceuticals, and coordinating and overseeing clerical and technical support work. Works under limited supervision, with considerable latitude for the use of initiative and independent judgment. Provide treatment to HHS employees injured in course and scope of employment. Work includes technical pharmacy services that do not require professional judgment regarding preparing and distributing drugs. Works under the direct supervision of a pharmacist and is responsible to a pharmacist, as defined in Texas Administrative Code (TAC) Title 22, Part 15, Chapter 291, Subchapter D, Rule §291.72.

Requirements

• Knowledge of medical and pharmacy nomenclatures, including trade names of pharmaceuticals and standard abbreviations used in the pharmacy, especially pertaining to prescription interpretation, strengths and dosage forms of a variety of pharmaceuticals; knowledge of federal and state laws governing pharmacy operations; and knowledge of pharmaceutical math and laws governing pharmacy operations.
• Skill in the operation of pharmaceutical equipment; skill in standard office equipment, computers, and software for pharmacy applications.
• Ability to prepare prescriptions, to inventory supplies, and to communicate effectively both orally and in writing; ability to convert between brand and generic names and to use computer software for pharmacy applications; ability to demonstrate computer skills or ability/commitment to learn an acceptable level of competency; ability to follow written or oral instructions and to learn prescribed routine procedures.
• Must be certified by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB); registered with the Texas State Board of Pharmacy. Valid driver’s license.
• High school graduate or equivalent required; successful higher education preferred.
• Minimum of two years of pharmacy technician experience.
• Applicants must pass a fingerprint criminal background check, pre-employment drug screen, and registry checks including the Client Abuse/Neglect Reporting System (CANRS), Nurse Aide, Medication Aide and Employee Misconduct and HHS List of Excluded Individuals/Entities (LEIE).
• Males between the ages of 18 – 25 must be registered with the Selective Service.
• All State Supported Living Center Employees are subject to Random Drug Testing.
• All applicants must be at least 18 years of age to be considered for employment at a state-operated facility.

Responsibilities

• Attends work on a regular basis and may be required to work a specific shift schedule or, at times, even a rotating schedule, extended shift and/or overtime in accordance with agency leave policy and performs other duties as assigned.
• Pre-package and label unit-dose and multiple dose medication orders. Operates unit-dose packaging system and other mechanical equipment to pre-pack and label bulk medications into unit-dose packages for distribution within the facility. Ensures generic name, strength, lot and expiration date of drug are properly recorded on the label and log records, and ensures a supervising pharmacist conducts a final check and affixes his/her name, initials, or electronic signature to the appropriate quality control records prior to distribution in compliance with Texas Administrative Code Title 22, Part 15, Chapter 291, Subchapter D.
• Performs Medication Room Inspections. Monthly inspections are performed and results submitted to the Pharmacy Director and Nursing Management to ensure the required documentation (current copy of Facility Pharmacy Policy and Procedures, listing of approved abbreviations, metric equivalents, and approved list of stock medications) is present; medications are locked appropriately; medications are stored appropriately, temperature logs are current, and the medication room, refrigerator and carts are clean and orderly; and dose preparation area is clean, date of first puncture noted on multi-does injectable vials, no evidence of use past expiration date, no presence of medications which have passed a stop date, expired or are for a discharged resident, and no container with worn, illegible, dated, missing, or altered labels.
• Assists the pharmacist in various technical aspects of preparation of non-routine medication orders for medications required for residents going on furlough (home visits, etc.), residents being transitioned to community settings, new medications required for residents discharged from the hospital, new medications requested by resident’s primary care physician or on-call physician. The pharmacy technician pulls medication from stock, and if medications are not available in-house submits stat order request to local pharmacy or to hospital following discharge. He/she counts, labels, and bags medications, and ensures a supervising pharmacist conducts a final check in accordance with TAC Title 22, Part 15, Chapter 291, Subchapter D, prior to delivery to the home or other area.
• Fill Medication Carts. The pharmacy technician uses the refill list generated from the pharmacy electronic health record (formerly the Worx program) to pull medications from stock, counts, labels, and bags medications, ensures a supervising pharmacist conducts a final check and affixes his/her name, initials, or electronic signature to the appropriate quality control records prior to distribution in compliance with TAC Title 22, Part 15, Chapter 291, Subchapter D, and the pharmacy technician prepares cart for delivery to the medication rooms at the facility.
• Maintains required medication stock for after-hours cabinet or medication cart. Pharmacy technician ensures that stock levels as identified by the facility Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee are maintained in the after-hours cabinet or medication cart; inventory of medications are completed each Monday to ensure that quantities were not reduced below the par value over the weekend and completes checks for expiration dates.
• Performs courier and drug delivery duties as necessary. The pharmacy technician delivers filled medication carts on a weekly basis; the nurse verifies the contents; and the pharmacy technician brings the empty cart back to the pharmacy. The pharmacy technician delivers stat medications from the infirmary, off-site pharmacies, and/or hospital to the home or other area of the facility as needed.
• Environmental inspections. The pharmacy technician ensures that all equipment is clean and in good working condition; pharmaceutical storage areas properly lighted and, ventilated, and maintained at a temperature and humidity level consistent with storage requirements; shelving, stock, and work areas are clean, neat, and orderly. The pharmacy technician inventories pharmacy supplies on a weekly basis and submits requisitions to ensure that par values are maintained for all supplies, including but not limited to printer supplies, labels, bottles, etc.
• Ordering and receiving pharmaceuticals. Pharmacy technicians may be identified as either the Purchaser for ordering pharmaceuticals or as the Receiver of pharmaceuticals. (Note: if facility has two pharmacy technicians one will be authorized to submit the requisitions and the other will be authorized to receive the shipments.) reconciles and stocks drug shipments from the state vendor; reports drug shortages and excess to the wholesaler and discrepancy is communicated to pharmacists and accounting staff; processes charge vouchers and credit adjustments; and shares ordering documentation with other facility staff as requested.
• Monthly and annual inventory of pharmaceuticals. The pharmacy technician maintains a perpetual inventory and upon removal of controlled substances, subtracts the quantity from the perpetual inventory record; maintains a perpetual inventory of expired controlled substance medications until the time of disposition; assists the pharmacists and accounting staff with monthly inventory of Schedule II drugs to compare the physical count with the perpetual inventory to determine if there are any discrepancies; and assists the pharmacists and accounting staff with the end of fiscal year inventory to determine the cash value.
• Coordinates and oversees clerical and technical support work. The pharmacy technician coordinates the dissemination of information, development of filing systems, and maintains or oversees other administrative support work, including but not limited to audit records, controlled substance records, dangerous drugs, data processing system records, inventory records, resident patient information, notifications required by the Texas Pharmacy Act, outpatient records (pass/furlough/discharge), perpetual inventory, recalled drugs, records of distribution of controlled substances, repackaging control logs, and reports of surrender or destruction of controlled substances and/or dangerous drugs; and ensures that retention schedules are maintained in compliance with pharmacy law and SSLC Division Pharmacy Services Policy.
• Provide treatment to HHS employees injured in course and scope of employment.
• Other duties as assigned include but are not limited to actively participating and/or serving in a supporting role to meet the agency’s obligations for disaster response and/or recovery or Continuity of Operations (COOP) activation. Such participation may require an alternate shift pattern assignment and/or location.

Benefits

• Our comprehensive benefits package includes 100% paid employee health insurance for full-time eligible employees, a defined benefit pension plan, generous time off benefits, numerous opportunities for career advancement and more.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: High school or GED
• Number of Employees: 1-10 employees