Pharmacy Technician

Description:

This Pharmacy Technician position is in Pharmacy Services at the VA White River Junction Healthcare System, located at the White River Junction, VT location.

Requirements:

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).

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).

Grandfathering Provision. Pharmacy technicians employed in VHA on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including positive education and licensure/certification/registration that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements in this standard but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:

(1) Employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level or changed to lower grade within the occupation but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.
(2) Employees in an occupation that requires a licensure/certification/ registration only at higher grade levels must meet the licensure/ certification/registration requirement before they can be promoted to those higher grade levels.
(3) Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
(4) Employees who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re-entry to the occupation.
(5) Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation. e. 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 educational credentials.

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 educational credentials.

Grade Determinations: Pharmacy Technician, GS-08

In addition to meeting the basic requirements, to qualify for the GS-08 you must possess at least 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-07).

Certification: For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either:

1. Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB), Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT).
2. National Healthcareer Association (NHA), Certified Pharmacy Technician (ExCPT).

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following technical KSAs:

1. 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.
2. Skill in training and orienting new and existing pharmacy facility employees and students on proper policies and procedures.
3. Ability to evaluate, analyze and coordinate workflow and work activities within a specialized area or section of the pharmacy.

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.

Preferred Experience: Previous hospital pharmacy experience. Retail pharmacy experience is acceptable.

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: Principal duties of this position require repetitive use of hands and fingers (e.g., preparing prescriptions, use of a computer keyboard, etc.). May require lifting and carrying light loads (up to 44lbs.), including boxes, equipment, medical supplies, stock boxes etc.; stooping or kneeling (e.g., to pick up items from the floor, remove and replace items on lower shelves, and to file documents in lower file drawers, etc.); sitting, walking, or standing for long periods of time (4-8 hours). Ability to operate automation. Normal ranges of hearing and vision are required to perform work and communicate effectively. An ability to perform tasks.