Pharmacy Technician I

General Summary / Overview Statement

Reporting directly to the Director of Procedural Services (Infusion and Dialysis), this position will serve as the lead pharmacy tech, in partnership with the senior pharmacist, for Neurology department and therefore will develop expertise in those specific treatment areas. Former expertise in specific treatment area not required upon hire.

This role will work closely with the ordering providers and Infusion Team at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) and Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital (BWFH) for patients receiving infusion at both locations, in addition to patients utilizing home infusions.

This role will be a combination of direct patient care and education in addition to administrative responsibilities regarding infusion starts, renewals, co-pay assistance and home infusion orders.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

1. Review infusion orders and therapy plans to ensure all drugs are appropriately indicated, effective, safe, and convenient for the patient.

o Ensure appropriate infusion referrals have been placed.

o Ensure co-pay assistance programs have been applied for, as needed.

2. Works closely with MD's and APP's regarding appropriateness of home infusion versus facility infusions.

o Helps facilitate home infusion order sets.

3. Works with the senior pharmacist and scheduling staff to ensure timely scheduling of infusion appointments.

4. Begin white bag process for patient medications when applicable.

5. Receives, reviews, and facilitates requests for medication renewal. Reviews the requests according to guidelines. Pends the requests in the electronic medical record (Epic) and routes to prescriber for review and signature.

6. When electronic prescribing is not available, acts as an agent of the provider to transmit prescription information to pharmacies by phone, fax, or paper.

7. Prior Authorizations will be obtained by the Prior Authorization team, the pharmacy tech will coordinate with the senior pharmacist and PA team regarding denials as needed.

8. Appropriate tracking of patients requiring infusion therapy to ensure timely PA renewals and any change to therapy.

9. Support the infusion service to educate patients and ensure that the patient understands the specific goals of therapy and that the patient and providers are working to achieve these goals.

10. Support the infusion service to educate ordering providers on how to submit infusion orders and/or therapy plans appropriately.

11. Perform electronic medical record review to ensure appropriate histories are obtained along with other patient data in the pharmaceutical care evaluation to minimize denials.

12. Provide counseling and answer questions from patients, family, and health care professionals concerning drug therapy.

13. Participate with physician, nursing, and administrative leadership to evaluate and analyze patient outcomes from a pharmacy perspective.

14. Maintain proficiency by reviewing literature, attending in-services, seminars, and conferences.

15. Actively participate in departmental and infusion based clinical meetings as requested.

16. Provide cross-coverage for other departmental Infusion pharmacy techs as needed.

17. Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

1. High School Diploma or equivalent.

2. Must be at least 18 years of age.

3. Successful completion of an accredited or Board-certified Pharmacy Technician training program, or equivalent institutional/retail pharmacy or medical office experience is highly desirable.

4. One-year experience in a medical setting is required. Prior pharmacy experience desirable.

5. Knowledge of payer policies preferred.

6. Excellent verbal and written skills.

7. Proficiency with Microsoft Office.

8. Epic experience preferred.

9. Minimum Experience: One-year experience in a medical office or pharmaceutical industry is required. Prior pharmacy experience is desirable.

10. Additional Requirements: Excellent customer service and communication skills, proficient in the English language, ability to manage time and people effectively, good attention to detail, ability to follow policies and procedures. Commitment to applying individual clinical skills in collaborative team environment to achieve patient-specific and program-specific goals.

Skills and Abilities Required

1. Must have exceptional oral and interpersonal communication skills and prompt follow up.

2. Ability to prioritize and organize work duties within work hours, meeting deadlines as needed.

3. Ability to retrieve biomedical literature as appropriate for letters of medical necessity.

4. Must be able to train new employees and cross-cover.

5. Ability to work collaboratively as a member of the patient care team.