Pharmacy Technician

Summary

Pharmacy technicians at this level perform duties such as dispensing prescriptions using automated systems, identifying, and reporting failure of automation, prepacking medications, mailing prescriptions, delivery of medications to floors/ patients, filling medications for the pharmacist to review, checking for expired medications, answering phones with appropriate disposition, preparing sterile products (when applicable) and assisting with basic inventory management.

Duties

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The duties of the Pharmacy Technician include, but are not limited to the following:

• Properly handles medications by ensuring high alert, hazardous, refrigerated, and controlled substance medications are handled/stored appropriately and legally.
• Maintains, verifies, stocks, and replaces outdates in assigned areas.
• Monitors refrigerator temperature daily in assigned areas.
• Assists with inventory management, maintaining stock levels and ordering of medications.
• Prepares medications that requires special handling and documentation.
• Obtains proper medication or material in the proper strength and dosage form; determines proper amount and counts, pours, or measures the medications; affixes proper label; and records required data on order.
• Dispenses medications and supplies after a final check by a pharmacist using proper patient identifiers.
• Delivers finished prescriptions to correct patient and/or caregiver using proper patient identifiers.
• Correctly packages prescriptions for mailing.
• Assists in receiving, checking, and stocking medications and supplies.
• Assists other team members in various job-related duties and responsibilities.
• Maintains cleanliness and neatness of the work area.
• Identifies and reports failure of automation.
• Fills prescriptions utilizing the robotics. Packages, compounds, or assembles drugs and supplies that are not stocked in the automated robotics. This includes when assigned: prosthetic pharmacy prescriptions, wound care orders, and compounded prescriptions.
• Responsible for daily metering of and preparation of mail out packages.
• Compounds and/or reconstitutes oral or external medications (non-sterile) without a second review. This includes calculating and converting to proper weights and measures the amount of drug or solution to be used.
• Answers questions from pharmacy and non-pharmacy personnel regarding drug distribution. Identifies basic therapeutic problems such as duplicate therapy with drugs in the same class and alerts the pharmacist to the possible need for clinical intervention.
• Answers telephones and answers patients' questions.
• Provides individual training and guidance to lower-level technicians/students in Outpatient Pharmacy section.
• Processes prescription refills in VISTA.
• Is proficient in the use of the pharmacy package in VISTA and is able to investigate common issues (i.e., whether a prescription was mailed or filled for window pickup.
• Files documents correctly each day for easy retrieval.
• Performs all duties of lower graded technicians, if required.
• Other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am - 4:30 pm, Rotating Holidays and Weekends

Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized

Telework: Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 41217F

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• 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 dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• 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.

Qualifications

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.

Education or Experience.

• None required.
• For all grade levels and positions 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.

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.

Grade Determinations

Pharmacy Technician, GS-06. Pharmacy technicians at the full performance level may fill orders, dispense/deliver medications using automated systems or provide technical customer service to Veterans related to prescription needs. Duties will include delivery of medications to floors/patients, filling medications for the pharmacist to review, checking for expired medications, answering phones with appropriate disposition, preparing sterile products (when applicable) and assisting with basic inventory management such as putting up stock and identifying when medications need to be ordered.

Pharmacy Technician, GS-06: Education or Experience. One year of experience equivalent to the next lower (GS-5) level.

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

• Knowledge of Federal and state laws related to pharmacy practice.
• Knowledge of preparation, storage and distribution of medication products including those requiring special handling and documentation.
• Ability to use pharmacy information systems or operate pharmacy dispensing equipment.
• Knowledge of basic inventory procedures.
• Ability to communicate with patients and staff and direct questions to appropriate personnel.

Preferred Experience:

• Experience working in a complex health care facility.
• Experience working in a fast-paced outpatient pharmacy setting.

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-6.

Physical Requirements: Heavy lifting (45 pounds and over), Moderate lifting (15-44 pounds), Light lifting (under 15 pounds), Heavy carrying (45 pounds and over), Moderate carrying (15-44 pounds), Light carrying (under 15 pounds), Straight pulling (2 hours), Pushing, Reaching above shoulder, Use of fingers, Both hands required, Walking (up to 4 hours), Standing (prolonged), Repeated bending, Climbing, use of legs and arms (infrequent), Operation of motor vehicle, Near vision correctable at 13" to 16" to Jaeger 1 to 4, Far vision correctable in one eye to 20/20 and to 20/40 in the other, Specific visual requirement (Ability to read fine print on labels), Depth perception, Ability to distinguish basic colors, Hearing (aid permitted), Clear Speech, Emotional Stability, Good Dexterity

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

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/.

Additional information

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

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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.

Benefits

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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. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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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.