Clinical Pharmacist/Pharmacy Clinical Specialist - Emergency Department

Job Description

For a complete understanding of this opportunity, and what will be required to be a successful applicant, read on.

This position is eligible for a sign-on bonus up to $10,000 and relocation reimbursement up to $5,000

A Clinical Pharmacist in the Emergency Department serves as the dedicated decentralized pharmacist for the Emergency Department at Lutheran Hospital, a community teaching hospital providing a broad range of inpatient and emergency medicine services. As a key member of the interdisciplinary care team, this role partners closely with physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, respiratory therapists, and other caregivers to optimize medication therapy and support high-acuity patient care.

Responsibilities include reviewing and verifying medication orders, providing real-time pharmacotherapy recommendations, supporting antimicrobial stewardship initiatives, and serving as the primary pharmacy resource within the Emergency Department. The pharmacist responds to trauma activations, stroke alerts, cardiac arrests, rapid clinical deteriorations, and other emergent situations while providing drug information, medication education, and consultative support to both caregivers and patients.

This position offers a dynamic blend of direct patient care, clinical decision-making, emergency response, and collaborative problem-solving within a fast-paced environment where pharmacists are fully integrated into frontline patient care and operational workflows. This role will be the liaison between pharmacy practice and emergency services, supporting projects that impact both areas.

A caregiver in the Pharmacy Clinical Specialist – Emergency Department role will include responsibilities outlined above in addition to the opportunity to collaborate in more quality, research and committee/leadership activities but will have the same core patient care responsibilities for patient care and education as a Clinical Pharmacist.

A caregiver in this role will primarily work Monday through Friday from 11:00am to 7:30pm, decentralized in the Emergency Department, with schedules subject to operational needs. This position includes a weekend rotation on day shift from 6:30am to 2:30pm, occurring every fifth or eighth weekend. Caregivers will participate in a holiday rotation of approximately one holiday per year based on departmental needs. There are no on-call requirements.

This position offers the opportunity to:

• Practice at the top of your license combing clinical and operational services at a globally recognized cardiovascular institute
• Collaborate with world-class providers on highly complex patient cases
• Educate the next generation of pharmacists as a preceptor for residents and students
• Lead and contribute to initiatives that improve the medication-use process and patient outcomes
• Crosstrain across cardiovascular subspecialties to broaden clinical expertise

A caregiver who excels in this role will contribute to the following domains:

Patient Care

• Combine clinical and operational knowledge to optimize medication therapy.
• Prospectively review, interpret and clarify, medication orders to identify, prevent and resolve potential and actual drug related problems.
• Provide evidence-based recommendations to providers and recommend formulary alternatives when appropriate.
• Serve as the medication expert for optimizing drug therapy

Education

• Precept and mentor pharmacy residents and students through experiential education experiences
• Teach and guide pharmacy and non-pharmacy caregivers, residents and students through targeted formal and informal education

Organizational continuous improvement

• Identify and escalate clinical and operational issues impacting patient care or workflow.
• Contribute to health-system level decision-making related to practice area, committee work, and decision making for relevant policies.
• Demonstrate leadership within practice area.
• Contribute to the development, implementation and/or evaluation of internal QI/QA projects including research
• Support operational excellence through involvement in process improvement, project execution and drug shortage management

Minimum qualifications for the ideal future caregiver include:

• PharmD or Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from an accredited college of pharmacy
• PGY2 residency or fellowship training preferred; or
• PGY1 residency plus minimum of 2 years of relevant specialty experience as a clinical specialist or equivalent role which includes providing pharmaceutical care and performing pharmacotherapeutic monitoring including 50% or more of time spent in the specialty area; or
• Minimum of 4 years of experience as a clinical specialist or equivalent role which includes providing pharmaceutical care and performing pharmacotherapeutic monitoring including 50% or more of time spent in the specialty area
• Current state licensure as a Registered Pharmacist (RPh) or eligible for reciprocation in current state within 90 days of hire
• For individuals required to administer immunizations: current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification through the American Heart Association (AHA) or American Red Cross and completion of a Board of Pharmacy approved course in the administration of immunizations or certification obtained within 90 days of hire
• For individuals required to respond to adult or pediatric cardiopulmonary arrest events: current Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) certification or Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certification through the American Heart Association (AHA) or American Red Cross or certification obtained within one year of hire

For a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist

• PharmD or Bachelor's Degree in Pharmacy from an accredited college of Pharmacy
• Current state licensure as a Registered Pharmacist (RPh) or eligible within 90 days of hire
• Current Basic Life Support (BLS) Certification through the American Heart Association (AHA) and completion of a Board of Pharmacy approved course in the administration of immunizations or certification obtained within 90 days of hire (if administering immunizations)
• Completion of a Post-Graduate Year 2 Residency (PGY2) or fellowship OR completion of a Post-Graduate Year 1 Residency (PGY-1) and two years of experience as a Clinical Specialist or an equivalent role, including providing pharmaceutical care and performing pharmacotherapeutic monitoring for at least 50% of time in the specialty area OR four years of experience as a Clinical Specialist or an equivalent role, including providing pharmaceutical care and performing pharmacotherapeutic monitoring for at least 50% of time in the specialty area

Preferred qualifications for the ideal future caregiver include:

• Strong background in cardiology or critical care
• Completion of a post-graduate year 1 residency (PGY1), fellowship or relevant post-graduate pharmacy experience
• Board Certification

Physical Requirements:

• Typical physical demands include ability to perform the job while standing and walking for prolonged times, approximately 75% of shift and continuously for extended periods of time.
• Manual dexterity sufficient to perform computer and dispensing functions of the job; ability to lift up to 30 lbs.
• Position often includes reaching, stretching, stooping, climbing steps and sitting.
• Must have normal or corrected vision.
• Must have ability to clearly communicate verbally by phone or in person

Personal Protective Equipment:

• Follows standard precautions using personal protective equipment as required.

Pay Range

Minimum Annual Salary: $101,900.00

Maximum Annual Salary: $155,390.00

The pay range displayed on this job posting reflects the anticipated range for new hires. xhyhwjd A successful candidate's actual compensation will be determined after taking factors into consideration such as the candidate's work history, experience, skill set and education. The pay range displayed does not include any applicable pay practices (e.g., shift differentials, overtime, etc.). The pay range does not include the value of Cleveland Clinic's benefits package (e.g., healthcare, dental and vision benefits, retirement savings account contributions, etc.).