Pharmacy Technician
Department: Department of Veterans Affairs
Location(s): Columbus, Ohio
Salary Range: $57503 - $74756 Per Year
Job Summary: The Pharmacy Technician is a certified professional expected to provide a variety of complex technical functions that requires the application of an extensive knowledge of pharmaceuticals and pharmacy practices. The employee assists the pharmacist in providing optimal pharmaceutical care and timely customer service in accordance with the mission, vision and goals of VA Healthcare System.
Major Duties:
- VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn_ickNBEws Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional General Duties Accurately interpret, fills, and prepares prescriptions with appropriate medications and or medical supplies for pharmacist verification. Assures drugs and supplies are appropriately stored and secured according to USP and VA guidelines Records expiration dates in the automatic prescription dispensing system upon receipt. Perform monthly inspections to assigned areas to ensure proper storage of medications and soon to expired drugs are removed. Completes inspection reports in compliance with regulatory requirements. Completes procurement duties which include assisting with monitoring and management of physical inventory (supplies and medications). Reconstitutes oral or external medications (non-sterile). This includes calculating and converting to proper weights and measures the amount of drug or solution to be used for final pharmacist verification. Assists in training and orientation of new staff technicians, interns, and students. Complies with all VHA, Medical Center, and Pharmacy regulations, directives, policies, and procedures. Controlled Substances Activities: These functions will be assisting in or the absence of a controlled substance technician. Appropriately restocks controlled substances items in automated secured cabinets (i.e., Pyxis), in pharmacy, or throughout the facility as assigned. Documents all controlled substance related transactions as indicated by VA and DEA guidelines. Assures that inventory counts are correct at the time of restocking and filling. Ensures that proper handoff occurs when receiving or delivering controlled substances, assuring that these medications are never left unsecured. Inpatient Pharmacy Activities(when assigned):Sterile Product Compounding. These functions will be assisting in or the absence of the sterile compounding technician. Follow USP 797/800 Guidelines for the compounding of all sterile preparations, including ophthalmic, cardioplegic, TPN, hazardous, large & small volume IV solutions, PCAs, etc. Manufactures uncomplicated and/or complicated parenteral admixtures to be delivered in the form of large volume, small volume, infusion syringe or other as required. Correctly interprets physician orders, selects, and measures appropriate ingredients, mixes ingredients in a safe and effective manner, inspects the final product for accuracy, suitability, and elegance, labels the product, maintains records of the manufacturing process, and supplies the product for pharmacist verification and delivery. Unit Dose Medication Management Performs review of medications prepared by another pharmacy employee to be dispensed to clinic areas. Inventories and replenishes emergency trays. Operates and maintains automated dispensing unit dose systems. Automatic Replenishment/Ward Stock Correctly inventories, assesses, and determines the need for floor stock and external medication. Follows established policies and procedures, schedules, inventory levels, and usage rate reports to determine appropriate stock levels for specific areas of use. Accurately fills prescription items for wards using Automatic Replenishment reports. Outpatient Pharmacy Activities (when assigned):Prescription Assembly Assembles prescriptions properly with the correct drug, strength, quantity, auxiliary labels, and prescription labels. for window dispensing and mail delivery Assures that the correct medication is filled by using bar code scanning on stock bottles. Supports automation by manually completing prescriptions not processed through the automation dispensing machine. Window Pick-Up Verifies the patient's identification following the facility's policies (i.e., double patient identifiers) Verifies that the patient receives the correct prescriptions by using VA software (i.e., ScriptPro barcode scanning) Verifies the patient has received all prescriptions (i.e., refrigerated, controlled substances, bulk medications, etc.) Mail Packaging Utilizes and comprehends the mail shipping programs used by the facility (i.e., USPS, UPS, etc.) for overnight delivery of non-controlled and controlled prescriptions. Performs searches, updates patient information, and generates shipping reports as requested by the supervisor. Calls patients to arrange delivery of refrigerated prescriptions and verifies patients address. Work Schedule: Pharmacy core hours of operation are Monday - Friday, 7AM-7PM. ***Schedule will vary to include days, nights, weekends and holidays. Occasional overtime may be required. Specific schedules will be discussed during interviews. 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 #: 92222A
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. Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade). 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) 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). Grade Determinations: Pharmacy Technician, GS-07 Experience. Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Certification. For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either: PTCB as a CPhT. OR NHA as a ExCPT. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: Knowledge of pharmacy technician principles, practices, concepts and theories providing for sound independent work. Knowledge of the computerized prescription process and input of prescriptions and medication orders or electronic equivalent. Ability to resolve pharmacy/medication issues with other members of the healthcare team, Veterans and external customers. Ability to train developmental pharmacy technicians and students. Ability to dispense medication or sterile products following all regulations, policies and procedures to ensure safe medication distribution. Ability to troubleshoot automated dispensing equipment (ADE) or technology platforms/databases. 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-07. Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service.
How to Apply: All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 03/25/2026 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12907009. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.
Application Deadline: 2026-03-25