FLSA Status

Job Role Summary

The Clinical Pharmacist Specialist serves as an essential member of the healthcare team providing clinical expertise and optimizing patient medication regimens. Depending on the area of practice, services provided may include: interdisciplinary patient care rounds, medication reconciliation, medication therapy monitoring, medication orders management, patient education, drug information, drug dosing, and various scholarly activities. The Clinical Pharmacist Specialist ensures that patients’ medication therapy is safe, effective, timely, and efficient. The Clinical Pharmacist Specialist will provide training and education through practical and didactic experiences.

We are looking for experience in Primary Care and relevant chronic disease state management (such as diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, tobacco cessation, contraception management, etc.). Prior experience in these areas is preferred.

Essential Functions and Responsibilities

• Optimizes medication regimens for assigned patients by collecting necessary information needed to evaluate medication therapy and develop patient-specific pharmacotherapy plans, considerate of therapeutic duplication, potential drug interactions or contraindications, therapeutic goals, safety, efficacy, and financial stewardship
• Develops and helps implement appropriate therapeutic regimens and monitoring plans for patients; carries out therapeutic drug monitoring, drug therapy protocols, and required chart documentation according to departmental or health-system standards
• Performs and/or supervises transitions of care activities including medication reconciliation, medication education, coordinating follow-up care, and ensuring access to medications
• Assists with formulary management and medication use processes in any of the following capacities: critically evaluates non-formulary requests; adheres to drug use criteria and recommends therapeutic alternatives to prescribers; or assists with development of alternative strategies during drug shortages
• Understands departmental workflows; offers and implements suggestions to improve quality and efficiency; understands and consistently utilizes all information systems
• Promotes a culture of safety by identifying, mitigating, preventing, and reporting potential or actual medication incidents and adverse drug reactions
• Performs the following supervisory skills: supervises students and residents; provides feedback on performance to area manager; analyzes and adapts to changes in volume; ensures efficient use of downtime; works with a sense of urgency to assist customers and encourages the same sense of urgency in others; resolves crisis situations in a calm, constructive, and professional manner
• Engages in teaching which may include new employee onboarding, precepting, shadowing experiences; additional opportunities may include direct instruction, mentorship, in-services, assistance with research projects, and Grand Rounds
• Maintains responsibility for regulatory compliance by ensuring 100% timely completion of unit inspections and a constant state of readiness for all regulatory bodies
• Consistently maintains compliance with all hospital and departmental policies and procedures; completes all required educational activities and competencies in a timely manner; remains up to date on departmental processes by attending staff meetings, reviewing meeting minutes, and reading email communications

Job Requirements

• Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree required
• Licensure in the State of Indiana or licensure eligible (if licensure eligible, attainment of license within 90 days of hire)
• Completion of an ASHP-accredited PGY1 Pharmacy Residency or a minimum of three years full-time experience in hospital/clinical pharmacy required
• Completion of an ASHP-accredited PGY2 Pharmacy Residency preferred
• Certification through the Board of Pharmacy Specialties (e.g., BCPS, BCIDP) and/or specialty credential (e.g., CDCES, CACP, AAHIVP) preferred
• Basic Life Support (BLS) and/or Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certification as required by job assignment
• Participation in continuing education activities to meet licensure and certification requirements

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Knowledge of medication classes, pharmaceutical terminology, abbreviations, symbols; knowledge of metric system/mathematical calculations
• Knowledge and skills necessary to provide care appropriate to the age of patients served; must demonstrate knowledge of the principles of human growth and development over the life span and possess the ability to assess data/interpret appropriate information needed to identify each patient's requirements relative to age specific needs; age-appropriate cognitive abilities, skills, techniques and communications are detailed in the department/area/unit job specific/age specific competencies
• Demonstrates effective interpersonal skills through completion of daily activities; effectively interacts with interdisciplinary members of the healthcare team to work toward optimal patient experience and outcomes; communicates effectively in writing and verbally with pharmacy staff members, other departments, patients, and family members; anticipates service needs and proactively resolves issues
• Ability to effectively work and communicate with members of the health-care team and patients or their representatives
• Must maintain age-specific and job-specific competencies and licensure as described according to departmental competencies
• Maintains knowledge of relevant federal and state laws pertaining to all aspects of pharmacy practice, and knowledge of professional practice standards and regulations from healthcare stakeholders, including The Joint Commission, CMS, and ASHP