Pharmacy Technician

Veterans Health Administration • Tuskegee, AL

3d • Onsite

About The Position

The Care in the Community (CITC) pharmacy technician is a specialized technician with a high level of responsibility for assignments. This position will serve as the subject matter expert for community care prescriptions. This position will provide various customer support services within the pharmacy department.

Requirements

• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Education or Experience: (1) None required. (2) For all grade levels 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).
• Foreign Education: To be creditable, education completed outside the U.S. must be deemed at least equivalent to that gained in a conventional U.S. program by a private organization specializing in the interpretation of foreign education credentials.
• 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. In addition to the basic requirements for appointment, you must meet the following criteria.
• (1) Experience: Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level and demonstrate the KSAs below.
• (2) Certification: For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either: PTCB as a CPhT. OR NHA as a ExCPT.
• (3) 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:
• (a) 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.
• (b) Skill in training and orienting new and existing pharmacy facility employees and students on proper policies and procedures.
• (c) Ability to evaluate, analyze and coordinate workflow and work activities within a specialized area or section of the pharmacy.
• (4) Assignments. For all assignments above the full performance level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity and range of variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time.
• Pharmacy technicians at this level have a higher level of responsibility for specialized areas of pharmacy and are expected to independently carry out assigned tasks of considerable difficulty.
• Pharmacy technicians at this grade level may be appointed to one of the following assignments: Pharmacy Technician.
• Pharmacy technicians in this assignment specialize in areas such as sterile compounding, oncology, controlled substances, medication history review, clinical specialist (anticoagulation, pain, infectious diseases), clinical informatics, automation, immunizations and any other specialized area in the advancement of the profession.
• The pharmacy technician will serve as a subject matter expert and key resource in the day-to-day technician duties of the specialized area.
• The technician will be performing assignments such as compounding sterile products, filling controlled substance prescriptions while maintaining compliance with Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) regulations, taking medication histories and counseling patients, managing automation, managing workflow and training and orienting staff in the specialized area.
• Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Nice To Haves

• Previous outpatient experience.

Responsibilities

• Prescription order entry with pharmacist verification, laboratory value monitoring, medical chart/action profile poly-pharmacy reviews, drug utilization evaluation monitoring, pharmacoeconomic reviews, telephone logistical support, supplemental patient education communication, and medication reconciliation with pharmacist oversight.
• Receives faxed, mailed, electronically prescribed, or delivered prescriptions written by Non-VA providers and processes all received prescriptions to include assessment of appropriateness and eligibility, prioritizing urgent prescriptions first.
• Utilizes electronic health record, or other related sites to determine authorization and eligibility of Non-VA Care.
• Communicates with patients concerning prescriptions received from unauthorized provider visits and handles prescriptions appropriately, whether forwarding to primary care provider, returning to patient, and/or documenting in electronic health record.
• Reviews authorized prescriptions for appropriateness using Pharmacy Technician knowledge, as well as knowledge concerning the national drug formulary and local VA formulary requirements.
• Follows up via phone and/or fax with Non-VA Provider regarding initiated communications concerning non-formulary/prior authorization medications, clarifications, or medication change requests frequently, and documents in electronic health record.
• Inputs authorized prescriptions or prepares electronically prescribed medications into VISTA for review and verification by a CITC pharmacist or representative.
• Assists in the tracking and shipping of Non-VA prescribed controlled substances, as well as all Non-VA prescribed medications mailed from the Pharmacy or Consolidated Mail-Out Pharmacy (CMOP).
• Initiates requests for medications from specialty pharmacies.
• Serves as preceptor for pharmacy technician students.
• Performs telephone triage.
• Assists with and helps conduct the training, orientation, retraining, and documentation of training of employees to Pharmacy Service policies and procedures.
• Packages and assembles drugs and supplies.
• Knowledge of drug medication brand names, generic names/chemical names, general and special storage requirements, expiration date requirements, dosage forms, applicable systems of weights and measures, medical terminology in order to interpret physician's orders.

Benefits

• A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package.
• As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding.
• Learn more about federal benefits.
• Review our benefits
• Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent.
• Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed