Pharmacy Technician - Informatics and Medication Safety

The Pharmacy Technician - Informatics and Medication Safety role serves as a subject matter expert in pharmacy automation and informatics by managing and coordinating multiple automation systems, developing workflows and staff training, and supporting the Medication Safety Officer through data collection, event reporting, safety surveillance, quality improvement, education, staff guidance on safety processes, and administrative support to the Medication Safety Subcommittee.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF ASSIGNED DUTIES: Automation and Informatics Serves as a subject matter expert and key resource in the technical areas of pharmacy automation and informatics. Organizes, coordinates, and manages the technical aspects of multiple pharmacy automation systems under the supervision of informatics pharmacists. Develops workflows and related training and orientation of pharmacy staff. Medication Safety Assists the Medication Safety Officer with data collection, event reporting, medication safety surveillance, quality improvement activities, and educational support. Serves as a resource for staff on medication safety processes and reporting procedures. Provides administrative support to the Medication Safety Subcommittee. Performs other duties as assigned, including but not limited to those of a GS-07 or GS-08 Pharmacy Technician in the inpatient and outpatient pharmacies. Occasional travel within the healthcare system may be required. FUNCTIONS OR SCOPE OF ASSIGNED DUTIES: Automation and Informatics Manages the technical aspects of multiple pharmacy automation systems under the supervision of informatics pharmacists. Coordinates hardware and software across ICVAHCS and Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) to ensure timely, safe, efficacious, and cost-effective services. Ensures maximum system availability. Resolves system issues or escalates appropriately. Notifies affected staff and pharmacy leadership of system outages. Proactively communicates planned outages and contingency plans. Provides front-line technical support. Serves as liaison to Office of Information and Technology (OIT), Healthcare Technology Management (HTM, "BioMed"), and vendors. Submits and monitors service tickets. Coordinates installations and support. Participates in system testing. Develops, maintains, and provides pharmacy system orientation and training. Contributes to standardized and vetted orientation and training plans for all new pharmacy employees. Develops and runs reports as needed. Responds to operational information requests before applicable deadlines. Establishes and maintains record keeping systems. Medication Safety Assists in the collection, entry, and tracking of medication-related safety events, including adverse drug events (ADEs), medication errors, and near misses, using designated reporting platforms such as JPSR and VA Adverse Drug Event Reporting System (ADERS). Conduct preliminary review of event reports for completeness and accuracy prior to pharmacist or Medication Safety Officer review. Supports pharmacists in monitoring facility compliance with VHA, FDA, DEA, OIG, and Joint Commission medication safety standards by gathering and organizing compliance data. Runs and compiles standard reports from safety databases as directed, distributing them to designated staff for analysis. Assists in the preparation of de-identified summaries of medication event data for pharmacy management and interdisciplinary sharing. Maintains up-to-date records of ISMP alerts and communicates related notifications to pharmacy staff as instructed. Supports the department's residency program through participation in informatics and medication safety rotation activities. Performs specialized automation, informatics, and medication safety duties at least 25% of the time. Performs other professional or administrative tasks as assigned by the Pharmacy Informatics Supervisor, Medication Safety Officer, or Chief of Pharmacy Service. Work Schedule: Full-Time, Monday through Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not authorized Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases 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 #: 000000 Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized

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. 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. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

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/.