The Bilingual Pharmacy Coordinator will support the PCC’s efforts to improve access to essential medications for underserved patients living in Montgomery County. 

Reporting to the Director of Specialty Care and Medicine Access, the Pharmacy Coordinator (Coordinator) will take on a diverse range of roles, including ordering, stocking, and delivering medications on our formulary to community health centers; analyzing and tracking use of the medications and reporting the impact of our pharmaceutical services; and training health center staff on requesting medications. The Coordinator will serve as the first point of contact for PCC's local network of community health centers for pharmacy services administered by the PCC. The Coordinator will also help patients apply for low-cost or free brand name medications when generic medications on our formulary are not available. This aspect of the position includes working directly with patients to see if they are eligible for medication benefits from the moment they need it to the time they receive the medication, and often following up when the patient needs to renew their prescription. 

The Pharmacy Coordinator is part of a team that works to advance health equity for vulnerable patients. The ideal candidate will have a passion for applying their skills to make healthcare more accessible for those who experience barriers to care. This role is perfect for someone who has a knack for details and enjoys roles helping others. You are a great fit if you are an excellent communicator, work well with a diverse range of people, and appreciate seeing projects to completion. You should be open to learning and growing but also come with your own ideas on how to organize information or improve the process. You are collaborative and enjoy working in teams to get things done, but also thrive independently. You should be passionate about public health, supporting vulnerable communities, and have experience working with immigrant populations. This job is best performed by someone who has an open mindset, is a self-starter, and is eager to contribute and learn. Bilingual in English and Spanish required (proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Spanish).

TELEWORK: This position is eligible for hybrid remote work.  However, the job duties require in-person meetings and collaboration with PCC team members, a variety of groups, including County, State and health center representatives, and other community partners. The incumbent will need to travel to the health centers to conduct training and technical assistance as needed. Incumbent is also expected to be in the office to attend designated face-to-face meetings, collaborative opportunities, and to perform in-office duties as assigned. This position has in-office work requirements at PCC headquarters, to handle physical materials as part of pharmacy operations. PCC employees must reside in the following five states and District of Columbia: MD, VA, WVA, DE, PA. & DC.  Relocation costs are not provided.

Essential Duties

1. Coordinate PCC’s Community Pharmacy (CP) Program 

• Serve as the primary contact for health centers and vendors supplying generic medications and other products on the formulary
• Structure the yearly ordering schedule and collect and submit the bi-weekly medication orders, track shipping and delivery of orders, and resolve issues as needed
• Track, collect and quantify expired medications from health centers; coordinate with waste management vendor for expired medication pick up
• With input from Director, assign budget allocations for each health center; receive, verify, and process invoices for related medication vendors and services and monitor expenditures; generate monthly, quarterly, and annual spending reports
• Work closely with the Director for pharmacy cost savings and opportunities for program enhancement
• Serve as the PCC staff support to Quality Health and Improvement Committee for formulary and pharmacy development and attend the quarterly scheduled meetings 

2. Help Patients Secure Brand Name Medications 

• Provide training to safety net health center staff so their patients can apply for brand name medications through the PCC Medbank Program
• Track in-kind medication donations and prepare analytical reports. Manage an assigned patient caseload; respond to incoming calls from potential patients who may benefit from medication assistance program and set up intake/enrollment calls to understand the patients’ needs. 
• Follow guidelines to determine whether patients are eligible for pharmaceutical companies’ patient assistance programs and obtain necessary documentation required for program participation.
• Screen patients for eligibility in entitlement programs (e.g., Medicaid) and make refer as needed. 
• Prepare applications and compile documents for submission to pharmaceutical companies on patient’s behalf and monitors status after application is submitted. Conduct follow up to determine the status of patient’s application with drug companies to determine if patient was approved and if the medication was shipped to patient’s provider. Follow up with Provider to determine if meds were received and dispensed to client.
• Manage renewal orders of medications for clients and follow up on shipment, delivery, and inventory tracking; Conduct annual client re-certification as needed. 
• Perform administrative duties in support of program activity, including data entry, organizing documents, and informing others of updates.
• Maintain goodwill of patients and health centers by offering exceptional customer service
• Collaborate, share knowledge, and participate in improvement activities while maintaining high performance of assigned duties. 

Additional Duties 

• Represent the Medicine Access programs within PCC and to external stakeholders as assigned, in a professional and informed manner.
• Participate fully and collaboratively in ongoing Specialty Care and Medicine Access and PCC workgroups and quality improvement initiatives as requested.
• Performs other duties as assigned or as needed.

Skills and Abilities

• Knowledge, understanding, and interest in supporting safety net health centers and their vulnerable patients. 
• Strong interpersonal skills with ability to interact effectively and build collaborative relationships with diverse patients, health center staff members, and PCC team members. 
• Ability to prioritize work, manage time effectively, and meet time sensitive deadlines.
• Understanding and aptitude to learn medical terminology regarding prescription medication (e.g., prescribing guide, Merck manual) and pharmaceutical regulatory changes.
• Ability to break down complex medical information and communicate effectively.
• Demonstrated critical thinking strategies to review data, present ideas, and information.
• Ability to manage work deadlines and handle multiple assignments simultaneously.
• Ability to conduct research, analyze and interpret data and develop fact-based reports.
• Strong computer skills in Microsoft Office, Word, Excel, and Power Point, etc.
• Ability to learn new database systems and applications.
• A strong orientation to detail generally and specifically with entering data.
• Ability to travel to PCC’s network of health centers. 

Bilingual in English and Spanish required (proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Spanish). Ability to speak and write in additional languages such as Amharic, Mandarin, Farsi, French desirable.

Education and Experience 

• 3-5 years’ experience in an environment providing pharmacy related services preferred.
• 2+ years of personal, professional or volunteer experience with underserved communities and/or safety net medical or social service providers. 
• Experience utilizing data management systems in a health care related environment. 
• Experience preparing program reports and presentations. 
• Personal or professional experience and passion working with diverse, underserved populations.
• Proficiency in Microsoft office suite and Adobe Pro.
• Certified Pharmacy Technician, Certified or Registered Medical Assistant or Bachelor’s Degree in Public Health, Healthcare Administration, Business Administration, or related field is a plus. 

ADA Requirements

This job operates in a professional office environment. The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
• This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, telephones, photocopiers, filing cabinets, storage rooms and fax machines. 
• This is primarily a sedentary role; however, some movement of material goods may be required. 
• This would require the ability to lift files and pharmaceutical products, open filing cabinets or storage areas and bend or stand as necessary.  
• Requires ability to learn new software applications, as necessary.
• Must be able to lift up to 20 pounds. 
• Must be able to travel locally.

Disclaimer

This job description indicates in general the nature and levels of work, knowledge, skills, abilities, and other essential functions as covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act expected of an incumbent.  It is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities required of an incumbent.  An incumbent may be asked to perform other duties as required.

Primary Care Coalition is an Equal Opportunity Employer.