Lead Pharmacy Technician

Summary

The Lead Pharmacy Technician for Outpatient Pharmacy serves as an advanced, highly skilled technical expert responsible for coordinating, overseeing, and supporting complex outpatient pharmacy operations and sterile compounding.

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Duties

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The Lead Pharmacy Tech applies expert knowledge of Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) regulations; Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA) policies, USP 797 and USP 800; automated dispensing technologies; outpatient workflow processes; and controlled substance accountability principles. This position also provides designated backup support for controlled substance operations. Employees at this level independently perform assignments of substantial difficulty and act as a subject matter expert and primary resource for technicians working in outpatient service areas, ensuring strict compliance, accuracy, and diversion prevention standards. The incumbent also provides clinical support by assisting with prescription triaging, managing internal telephone or chat communications, and directing inquiries to appropriate staff.

The Lead Pharmacy Technician provides day-to-day operational direction, monitors workload demands, assigns tasks to maintain efficient workflow, and ensures that automation, equipment, and inventory systems remain fully functional and optimized. The lead technician will create and adjust technician rotation schedules to optimize workflow. The technician integrates standard operating procedures into daily activities to support safe, accurate, and compliant medication distribution. Responsibilities include guiding and supporting staff in the supervisor's absence; training and mentoring new and experienced technicians; identifying developmental needs; and contributing to service wide quality improvement initiatives.

The Lead Technician plays a key role in maintaining clear, consistent, and effective communication across the outpatient teams. This includes facilitating communication flow, reinforcing shared expectations, ensuring staff receive timely updates, and promoting alignment among technicians and pharmacists. The incumbent supports and promotes transparent information sharing, collaborative problem resolution, and coordinated operations to enhance consistency and team cohesion throughout the pharmacy.

Duties are continued in the education Section of this announcement:

the Lead Technician provides operational coverage for outpatient pharmacy technicians as needed. This includes performing medication dispensing, prescription preparation, call center log coverage, inventory management, automated dispensing cabinet (ADC) stocking and restocking, and assisting with daily production to support service continuity. The incumbent performs quality assurance (QA) activities including monthly inspections/inventories, medication room audits, automation QA tasks, and workflow quality checkpoints.

The lead technician also serves as the designated timekeeper for Lubbock Pharmacy. They will be the subject matter expert for VATAS/GovTA. This requires knowledge of timekeeping rules and regulations and keeping correct records for management of all employees' payroll information.

The lead technician will be responsible for completing monthly surface samples for the sterile compounding suite, completing the proper documentation for the processing lab and completing the electronic software to track documentation of environmental monitoring along with automated task management to ensure compliance with USP and standards. The lead technician will also be responsible for ensuring that the electronic software to track documentation of environmental monitoring is completed by technicians daily so that the pharmacy is in a constant state of readiness for audits and surveys.

Duties are continued in the Education Section.

Work Schedule : Monday - Friday, 8 AM - 4:30 PM

Recruitment/Relocation Incentives (Sign-on Bonus): Not authorized

Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not authorized

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)

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

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 ( 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.

Qualifications

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 - You must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7403(f).
• Education or Experience:
  1. None required.
  2. 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.
• Certification (GS-07 and above): 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).

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).

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 :

Lead Pharmacy Technician, GS-0661-08

1. Experience: 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). To be equivalent to the GS-08 level, experience must have also been earned while having an active CPhT or ExCPT as described 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:
   1. Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB), Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT).
   2. National Healthcareer Association (NHA), Certified Pharmacy Technician (ExCPT).
3. 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.)
   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.

Preferred Experience:

• VA Experience
• Experience with Pharmacy automation including ScriptPro and Pyxis
• Experience working in an outpatient pharmacy environment
• Leadership/management experience
• Controlled substance management experience

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit

The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-08.

Physical Requirements:

Physical aspects associated with work required of this assignment are typical for the occupation and would generally not require a pre-placement examination

Education

There are no education requirements for this position.

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: 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:

Duties Continued:

- Serves as the work leader for the assigned area, ensuring daily tasks and work assignments are carried out efficiently; seeks supervisory assistance for major issues or complex problems when needed.

- Monitors work in progress to ensure compliance with policies, Pharmacy Service procedures, departmental instructions and controlled substance requirements.

- Orients, trains and instructs pharmacy employees and students in specialized tasks, job techniques, controlled substance workflow, automation use and regulatory compliance standards.

- Independently gathers, evaluates, and analyzes operational data to generate reports, identify trends, support audits and complete management assigned projects.

- Responds to and resolves routine, informal outpatient pharmacy concerns; appropriately escalates more complex or formal issues to the Associate Chief of Pharmacy or Chief of Pharmacy.

- Evaluates workload volume, identifies backlogs, redistributes or adjusts staff to meet operational targets.

- Develops training schedules; orients, mentors, and evaluates technician competency in controlled substance policies, automation and all outpatient workflows.

- Conducts technician meetings and disseminates departmental updates.

- Operates, maintains, refills and troubleshoots specialized or automated pharmacy equipment, ensuring safe, accurate and uninterrupted operations.

- Functions as backup for receipt of non-controlled substances when needed.

- Assists supervisors with quality improvement initiatives, policy development and accreditation preparation (TJC, OIG, DEA inspections).

- Monitors and improves processes to eliminate duplication, reduce waste and enhance patient care safety.

- Accurately collects samples for QA programs, ensuring reliability of testing and compliance documentation.

- Handles all hazardous (HD) medications in full compliance with USP standards and facility specific HD procedures.

- Follows all applicable United States Postal Service (USPS) and Department of Transportation requirements for hazardous material (HAZMAT) handling consistent with USPS Publication 52 and VA shipping guidelines.

- Performs all duties listed for outpatient pharmacy technicians, meeting or exceeding required competencies, and performs additional duties as assigned.

- Performs duties of lower graded technicians when necessary to maintain seamless pharmacy operations.

Other Technician Responsibilities:

- Prepares, fills, dispenses, and manages controlled substance orders per all VA, VHA, DEA and facility policies.

- Coordinates timely processing and delivery of outpatient controlled substances, utilizing current mail labeling, HAZMAT handling and tracking systems to ensure timely, safe, secure and accurate distribution. Periodically evaluates and adjusts delivery schedules to enhance workflow efficiency.

- Conducts required inventories every 72 hours or updated twice weekly requirements as directed by policy.

- Performs daily reconciliation of all controlled substances received, stored, dispensed, wasted, transferred or destroyed.

- Coordinates and assists Controlled Substance Compliance Inspectors with monthly inspections; prepares audit documentation.

- Manages the outpatient controlled substance accountability and distribution program, regularly evaluating for vulnerabilities, identifying deviations and elevating concerns to the Chief of Pharmacy or designee. Recommends process improvements to reduce diversion risk and strengthen compliance.

- Maintains accurate electronic inventory: decrementing, receiving, transfers to ADCs, vault dispensing and returns.

- Maintains adequate but minimal stock levels of all scheduled medications in the Master and Outpatient Vaults by performing routine inventory assessments, bar coding and prepacking items for readiness, communicating procurement needs to the Pharmacy Procurement Specialist and rotating inventory to remove outdated stock.

- Maintains precise, continuous perpetual inventory of all controlled substances across all primary and secondary storage areas by ensuring every item is accurately tracked, recorded and reconciled in real time. Upholds strict accountability standards by maintaining exact on hand balances in accordance with VHA and all applicable DEA regulations, ensuring full compliance with federal policy, VA requirements and controlled substance management procedures.

- Manages destruction and return processes for controlled substances per DEA and VHA guidelines.

- Prepares, monitors, and analyzes controlled substance usage reports, considering factors such as patient census; investigates discrepancies; and reports

abnormalities immediately to supervisors or the Chief of Pharmacy Service.

- Oversees storage integrity by ensuring controlled substance stock is secure, locked, segregated, sealed and maintained within working stock limits.

- Manages all processes involving VA Form 10 2638 ("Green Sheet") during Pyxis/VistA outages. Collecting forms from nursing units and all pharmacy areas; reconciling balances; reviewing for discrepancies; auditing recordkeeping; conducting spot checks; and notifying leadership of deviations or improper documentation.

Duties are continued in the Additional Information Section.

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.

Duties Continued:

- Provides controlled substance training and education to pharmacists, physicians, narcotic inspectors, pharmacy technicians and students on proper handling, security, distribution, and documentation requirements.

- Regularly communicates controlled substance policy and procedure updates to facility personnel to maintain shared understanding and compliance.

- Executes the annual controlled substance inventory for both Master and Outpatient Vaults with strict accuracy to support Pharmacy Service audit and inspection requirements.

- Applies comprehensive knowledge of Federal and State laws, DEA regulations, VA directives and facility policies governing controlled substance distribution throughout the medical center.

- Ensures compliance with all Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN), Office of Inspector General (OIG), The Joint Commission (TJC), Veterans Affairs Central Office (VACO), DEA and facility level requirements.

- Oversees the outpatient controlled substance accountability and distribution program; regularly evaluates program integrity, identifies vulnerabilities, communicates findings to leadership and recommends improvements to reduce risk and strengthen compliance.

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.

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