The posting
Company Description
At Northwestern Medicine, every patient interaction makes a difference in cultivating a positive workplace. This patient-first approach is what sets us apart as a leader in the healthcare industry. As an integral part of our team, you'll have the opportunity to join our quest for better health care, no matter where you work within the Northwestern Medicine system. We pride ourselves on providing competitive benefits: from tuition reimbursement and loan forgiveness to 401(k) matching and lifecycle benefits, our goal is to take care of our employees. Ready to join our quest for better?
Job Description
The Clinical Pharmacist reflects the mission, vision, and values of NM, adheres to the organization’s Code of Ethics and Corporate Compliance Program, and complies with all relevant policies, procedures, guidelines and all other regulatory and accreditation standards.
The Clinical Pharmacist is responsible for identifying, preventing, and/or resolving medication related problems; for providing authoritative information to other health care professionals, patients, and the public; and for assuring that the informational, clinical, and drug distribution components of pharmacy services function as an integrated system to provide patient centered care to the patients and staff of Northwestern Medicine.
The mission of the Department of Pharmacy is to deliver the safest, highest quality, most effective and efficient patient care while developing the best people, advancing research, and integrating pharmacy services to successfully coordinate care across the Northwestern Medicine enterprise.
The vision of the Department of Pharmacy is to be a recognized as a national leader in advancing the pharmacy enterprise through excellence, innovation, education and research.
Ambulatory Care Clinical Pharmacist Responsibilities:
- Works under collaborative practice agreements with physicians, advanced practice nurses, and physician assistants to manage patient therapeutic needs related to hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes and other chronic conditions as needed.
- Collaborates with physicians, advanced practice nurses, physician assistants, medical assistants, dieticians, care coordinators and others to address patient treatment needs related to hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes and other chronic conditions.
- Meets with patients individually to provide medication support and monitoring either by 1) managing directly or 2) in partnership with physicians, advanced practice nurses, physician assistants, dieticians, medical assistants, care coordinators, and other members of the Ambulatory Care Clinic team.
- Adjusts therapy as indicated by patient condition and laboratory results.
- Educates patients and their families about medications.
- Communicates professional knowledge effectively in both oral and written forms to patients and other health professionals.
- Maintains a comprehensive EPIC patient profile. The profile will include pertinent information which may influence medication therapy decisions.
- Maintains a current medication list in EPIC by performing medication reconciliation at each patient visit.
- Bills for clinical services provided where appropriate.
- Develop communication materials to support clinical initiatives, as needed.
- Presents clinical information to patient groups, as needed.
- Participates in Medical Resident, Pharmacy Resident, and Pharmacy Student Training
- Participates in quality improvement and medication use review activities of the center.
- Organizes, prioritizes, and plans workload within given time constraints. Works cooperatively with other members of the team to assure established center objectives are accomplished.
- Maintains proficiency and expertise in area(s) of practice through continuous professional development.
- Prepares and presents information at various committees, as needed.
- Develop and implement strategies to improve health outcomes across targeted populations, focusing on quality performance metrics.
- Analyze clinical and claims data to identify care gaps, stratify risk, and support data-driven decision-making.
- Collaborate with prescribers and care teams to coordinate patient outreach and close quality care gaps.
- Monitor and report on key performance metrics tied to value-based care initiatives and payer contracts.
- Design and optimize workflows that support medication adherence, care transitions, and patient engagement across diverse populations.
- Educate healthcare teams on evidence-based guidelines, coding practices, and population health goals to drive system-wide improvement.
- Leverage health IT systems to track interventions, measure impact, and support continuous quality improvement efforts.
- Conduct targeted digital or telephonic outreach to patients identified with medication adherence gaps, focusing on chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia.
- Educate patients on the importance of medication adherence, addressing barriers such as side effects, cost, or misunderstandings about therapy.
- Document outreach efforts and patient-reported reasons for non-adherence to inform follow-up care and workflow improvement.
- Collaborate with pharmacy teams, providers, and case managers to resolve medication-related issues and support transitions of care.
- Track and report adherence outreach outcomes to evaluate impact and guide future interventions and resource allocation.
- Use payer tools and EMR-based patient lists to prioritize high-risk patients and ensure timely outreach and follow-up
Clinical Pharmacist Core Responsibilities:
- Interprets medication orders to ensure safety and proper use of medications and is alert to compatibilities, incompatibilities, medication duplication, medication allergies, and potential medication administration errors. Coordinates the solving of medication related problems between pharmacy, nursing, and prescribers, demonstrating initiative and sound judgment.
- Monitors medication therapy for significant drug-drug, drug-diet, or drug-laboratory test interactions. Intervenes in circumstances of significant interactions, therapeutic duplications, and other occasions where pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetic expertise is warranted.
- Evaluates and documents that the medication(s) selected are appropriate for achieving the desired therapeutic outcome. Communicates potential problems and likely solutions to the prescriber.
- Acts as a consultant in the areas of pharmacokinetics and adverse reactions to physicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals. Participates in all therapeutic drug monitoring or intervention programs; adjusting therapy as indicated by patient condition and laboratory results.
- Processes all medication order information into the Electronic Health Record to ensure accuracy of records regarding past, current and future dispensing and charging.
- Maintains a comprehensive pharmacy patient profile. The profile should include age, maturation, weight, allergies, diagnosis, estimated and actual pharmacokinetic parameters, and pertinent information which may affect medication therapy decisions.
- Oversees the packaging labeling, and distribution of medications for all patients and employees according to established policies, procedures, and guidelines. Monitors the use of scheduled medications on the nursing units and maintains controlled inventories of medication in the dispensing areas.
- Compounds and dispenses pharmaceuticals including sterile products, chemotherapy and parenteral nutrition products.
- Verifies medication orders before delivery to patient care areas and ensures accuracy and completeness. Resolves discrepancies as necessary.
- Reviews all laboratory data for appropriateness of medication use and recommends changes when needed. Including microbial culture and sensitivity data, toxicology, therapeutic drug monitoring, etc.
- Develops and presents orientation, education and training programs for medical, nursing, hospital and pharmacy staff, as well as assisting in the educating of pharmacy students, residents, and fellows.
- Educates patients and their families about specific medications.
- Responds to emergency situations to assist with medication management (e.g. response to cardiac arrests)
- Provides accurate and timely medication information and or teaching to healthcare professionals or patients.
- Maintains the hospital formulary and acts to limit medication usage to formulary items when appropriate
- Documents all clinical activities and interventions performed. Collects data, maintains logs, records and other documentation as required by the department
- Communicates professional knowledge effectively in both oral and written forms to patients and other health professionals.
- Participates in quality improvement and medication use review activities of the department.
- Organizes, prioritizes, and plans workload within given time constraints. Works cooperatively with fellow pharmacists to oversee and direct the activities of the work area, to assign work to technicians, and to assure that the established department objectives are accomplished
- Reviews restocking automated dispensing cabinets (ADCs) throughout the hospital and resolves any problems.
- Ensures compliance with hazardous waste collection and disposal procedures.
- Maintains proficiency and expertise in area/s of practice through continuous professional development.
- All other job duties as assigned.
Qualifications
Minimum Requirements:
Education:
- Bachelor’s Degree in Pharmacy or a Doctor of Pharmacy Degree
Licensure:
- Active Clinical Pharmacist license in the state of Illinois (IDFPR)
Preferred:
- Training and knowledge of specialty areas (neonatology, critical care, oncology, etc.)
- Completion of a pharmacy residency program or equivalent hospital pharmacy experience
Additional Information
Northwestern Medicine is an equal opportunity employer (disability, VETS) and does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of age, sex, race, color, religion, national origin, gender identity, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation or any other protected status.
Background Check
Northwestern Medicine conducts a background check that includes criminal history on newly hired team members and, at times, internal transfers. If you are offered a position with us, you will be required to complete an authorization and disclosure form that gives Northwestern Medicine permission to run the background check. Results are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and we follow all local, state, and federal laws, including the Illinois Health Care Worker Background Check Act.
Artificial Intelligence Disclosure
Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may be used in some portions of the candidate review process for this position, however, all employment decisions will be made by a person.
Benefits
We offer a wide range of benefits that provide employees with tools and resources to improve their physical, emotional, and financial well-being while providing protection for unexpected life events.
Click on or copy and paste URL to your browser to view detailed benefits information
NorthwesternMedicine Career Page
https://jobs.nm.org/benefits
Please refer to the Benefits Eligibility by Employment Classification to determine benefits eligibility for job postings.
If sign-on bonus is included in a job posting eligibility is as followed: Internal employees and rehires who left Northwestern Medicine within 1 year are not eligible for the sign-on bonus. Exception: New graduate internal employees seeking their first licensed clinical position as a Registered Nurse at NM may be eligible.
