STATE OF CONNECTICUT EXECUTIVE BRANCH JOBS

Pharmacy Consultant (40 Hour)

Recruitment #220330-6200FP-001

Introduction

The State of Connecticut, Department of Public Health (DPH) is hiring! The Connecticut Department of Public Health Healthcare-Associated Infections & Antimicrobial Resistance (HAI-AR) Program is seeking a qualified individual for the position of Pharmacy Consultant.

The HAI-AR Program is responsible for surveillance, prevention, and response to healthcare-associated infections (HAI) and antimicrobial resistance (AR) in Connecticut. We are composed of Epidemiologists and staff with expertise in healthcare infection prevention and control (IPC). We collaborate with healthcare organizations, governmental agencies, non-governmental healthcare quality organizations, and clinicians to detect, prevent, and contain HAI and AR. We work closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Yale School of Public Health, Connecticut Hospital Association, long-term care industry partners, clinical laboratories, and others to conduct surveillance for, to prevent, and to reduce the burden of HAI and AR. Funded by cooperative agreements with the CDC, we are expanding our activity in the area of antimicrobial stewardship with the onboarding of staff dedicated to preventing the harms associated with inappropriate antimicrobial prescribing on an individual patient level and on a public health scale. Inappropriate or indiscriminate antimicrobial prescribing can result in patients being unnecessarily exposed to potential side effects of antimicrobial agents including increased risk for Closteroides difficile (C. diff) infection, tendon injury due to fluoroquinolone exposure, and cardiac injury due to fluoroquinlone or azithromycin exposure, among others. Inappropriate antimicrobial prescribing in conjunction with patient non-compliance can lead to the emergence and dissemination of resistance that can render antimicrobials useless for treatment. The goal of our antimicrobial stewardship work is to empower providers and patients to preserve the power of antimicrobials through careful and consistent application of best practices and treatment guidelines.

This Pharmacy Consultant position will be empowered to create programming to expand the reach of antimicrobial stewardship to sectors of the healthcare continuum that have been traditionally underserved by these efforts including long term care facilities, outpatient provider practices, dentistry, podiatry, and hemodialysis. In support of these efforts, this position will also lead staff to execute surveillance of antimicrobial use for targeted interventions and evaluation of program impact.

The HAI-AR Program is a dynamic, multidisciplinary team eager to welcome a pharmacist to expand our collective expertise and our impact!

The Mission of the Department of Public Health (DPH) is to protect and improve the health and safety of the people of Connecticut by assuring the conditions in which people can be healthy, preventing disease, injury, and disability, and promoting the equal enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health, which is a human right and a priority of the state.

DPH accomplishes this through the implementation of its Strategic Plan which outlines the actions that DPH is taking to accomplish its Mission.

Are you interested in joining our team as a Pharmacy Consultant? We encourage you to apply today! This position is conveniently located at 410 Capitol Avenue in Hartford and is full time with a 40 hours per week work schedule which is typically Monday thru Friday with possibilities for a flexible work schedule.

We offer a competitive benefits package, excellent health care, generous leave policies, retirement plan, and more!  We also encourage a healthy work-life balance to all employees!

Selection Plan

The minimum experience and training requirements must be met by the close date on the job opening, unless otherwise specified. This position will be filled in accordance with contractual language, reemployment, SEBAC, transfer, promotion and merit employment rules. In order to be considered for this job opening, you must meet the Minimum Qualifications as listed on the job opening. You must specify your qualifications on your application.  

Due to the volume of applications anticipated, we are unable to provide confirmation of receipt or status during the recruitment process. Updates will be provided through your JobAps portal account. 

Interviews will be limited to candidates whose experience most closely meet the preferred requirements of the position. At any point during the recruitment process, applicants may be required to submit additional documentation which support their qualification(s) for this position. These documents may include:  a cover letter, resume, transcripts, diplomas, performance reviews, attendance records, supervisory references, licensure, etc., at the discretion of the hiring agency. Applicants must meet the minimum qualifications as indicated to apply for this position.

In order to comply with Public Act 21-69, the State of Connecticut is no longer asking for resumes during the initial application process.   P

lease Note: You will be unable to make revisions once you submit your application for this posting to the JobAps system.

This posting may require completion of additional referral questions (RQs). You can access these RQs via an email that will be sent to you after the posting's closing date or by visiting your JobAps Personal Status Board (Certification Questionnaires section). Your responses to these RQs must be submitted by the question's expiration date. Please regularly check your email and JobAps Personal Status Board for notifications. Please check your SPAM and/or Junk folders on a daily basis in the event an email provider places auto-notification emails in a user's spam. 

Although applicants will receive correspondence via email, as a backup they are also encouraged to sign on to their Personal Status Board on a daily basis to monitor their status, view all emailed notices and complete tasks required in the recruitment process. 

The immediate vacancy is listed above, however, applications to this recruitment may be used for future vacancies in this job class. 

All application materials must be received by the recruiting agency by the time specified on the job opening for the position for which you are applying. Late applications may not be submitted and will not be considered. Exceptions are rare and limited to documented events that incapacitate a candidate during the entire duration of the job posting time period. It is the candidate’s obligation and responsibility to request an exception and provide a legally recognized justification to accommodate such exception.  Requests should be made to DAS.SHRM@ct.gov.

This position may be subject to Federal requirements for COVID 19 Vaccination Immunization. 

Should you have questions pertaining to this recruitment, please contact Chelsea Moore at Chelsea.Moore@ct.gov

PURPOSE OF JOB CLASS (NATURE OF WORK)

In a state agency this class is accountable for acting as a consultant in the application of pharmaceutical knowledge regarding the quality, propriety, timeliness and/or billing and dispensing practices of pharmaceutical services.

EXAMPLES OF DUTIES

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND ADDICTION SERVICES: Acts as a consultant and advisor to health facilities regarding quality of pharmaceutical services and maintenance of standards required by federal and state health programs; inspects, monitors, reviews and evaluates pharmaceutical services of health facilities including client drug regimens and individual client drug profiles, records of receipt, disposition of drugs, drug labeling, reports of pharmaceutical services committees, policies and procedures for safe and effective distribution and use of drugs; submits reports; conducts inservice training; participates in formulation of pharmacy regulations; investigates complaints associated with delivery of pharmaceutical services or appropriateness of drug therapy in health care facilities; may act as a liaison and/or consultant to other departments, agencies and associations in matters of pharmaceutical practices; may act as technical expert on matters pertaining to a professional licensing board or commission; performs related duties as required.

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES: Acts as a consultant to agency in administration of agency programs; monitors enrollment of providers; reviews provider agreements and advises administration as to appropriateness; assists in development of policies and procedures for implementing drug audit and drug utilization review; develops audit procedures and investigates allegations of false or fraudulent claims by pharmacies; reviews drug reporting system audit reports; spot checks client profiles kept by pharmacies; assists in auditing of propriety, reasonableness and timeliness of payments including payment of generic incentives; assists in development and resolution of provider procedures and appeals; spot checks appropriateness of generic substitutes; recommends drug policy and regulation changes for agency programs; acts as a liaison with other pharmacy programs and associations; monitors activity of drug utilization review committee; may act as technical expert on matters pertaining to a professional licensing board or commission; performs related duties as required.

Acts as a consultant in enforcement of price schedules of drugs supplied to state beneficiaries; conducts field audits of individual vendors; checks invoices for accuracy of amounts charged, propriety of drugs, duplication of charges and frequency of prescriptions at pharmacies; recovers excessive payments; relates departmental procedures to facilitate overall operation and communication with pharmacy associations; conducts audits of convalescent homes or intermediate care facilities to correlate records; explains policies and price schedules; consults with members of pharmacy associations; conducts cost comparison studies of proposed schedules; assists with modification of department drug program; may act as technical expert on matters pertaining to a professional licensing board or commission; performs related duties as required.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILL AND ABILITY

Considerable knowledge of and ability to apply relevant state and federal laws, statutes and regulations; considerable knowledge of principles, practices and methods of institutional or retail pharmacy operations; considerable knowledge of drugs and their actions and interactions; considerable knowledge of pharmaceutical quality control and distribution control procedures; knowledge of current prices of retail drug supplies; interpersonal skills; oral and written communication skills.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS - GENERAL EXPERIENCE

Three (3) years of experience as a registered pharmacist immediately prior to this appointment.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS - SPECIAL EXPERIENCE

One (1) year of the General Experience must have involved supervisory or administrative duties.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • Experience tracking antimicrobial usage across providers
  • Experience executing the CDC Core Elements for Antimicrobial Stewardship
  • Experience leading and implementing stewardship activities in a healthcare or public health setting
  • Experience working with multidisciplinary teams for antimicrobial stewardship
  • Experience communicating antimicrobial stewardship messages to providers and/or the public

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

1. Incumbents in this class must possess and retain a license as a Registered Pharmacist in Connecticut.
2. Incumbents in this class may be required to travel.

Conclusion

AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

The State of Connecticut is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and strongly encourages the applications of women, minorities, and persons with disabilities.