Becoming a Pharmacy Technician: Where to Begin?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the need for pharmacy technicians is growing rapidly, with the need for an estimated 426,000 pharmacy technicians by the year 2022. That is a 20 percent increase, being driven by an aging population entering Medicare, more people accessing health insurance due to the Affordable Care Act, and increased demand for prescription medications across the board. In addition to job security, pharmacists can expect to earn as much as $42,000 or more per year. Pharmacies are also looking to find candidates who have received postsecondary education and nationally recognized certification in pharmacy technology.

First Steps
Enroll for Pharmacy technician classes from Arizona College or other accredited colleges to start with. In addition to coursework, you must be licensed by the Arizona Board of Pharmacy in order to practice your externship while taking your classes. These courses are certifications only, not an Associate’s degree or Bachelor’s degree, though the American Council on Education can advise students with recognized professional certifications on converting them to college credit, should they choose to continue their education. Obtaining a full license after graduation requires taking the Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam (PTCE), which is administered by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board. Licensing certification will have to be renewed every two years, by completing 20 hours of continuing education before renewing your license. This ensures that you are current with new procedures, technology, and developments in the field of pharmacy.

Investigate programs to make sure that the pharmacy technician courses offer actual hands on training in pharmacy laboratories, with modern equipment and facilities, includes training in pharmacy management software, and is led by credentialed professional pharmacists. You will learn administrative and medical skills that will help you to fill a position that is in high demand and how to service customer needs with regard to the dispensing of and use of their prescribed medication. Candidates should be very detail oriented, organized, customer oriented, and cultivate listening skills to help them with interactions with pharmacists, physicians, and patients. Expect about 34 weeks of coursework followed a licensed externship where you will work in an actual pharmacy.

What You Will Learn
Pharmacy technicians follow a multidisciplinary course of study, with coursework in anatomy and physiology, medical terminology, law and ethics, mathematics, oncologic pharmacy, intravenous therapy, compounding, pharmacy computer applications as well as daily practice for hospital pharmacies and retail pharmacies. Becoming a pharmacy technician is far more than learning how to count pills and put them in a bottle. There are also other areas of specialization that US News says that students may want to consider after pleading their basic training such as drug therapy, pharmacy law, or medical distribution. Technicians may also want to consider this job a “test run” before committing to a full six-year program to complete a Doctor of Pharmacy or a Pharm. D as recommended by Mike Johnston, chairman and CEO of the National Pharmacy Technician Association.

The duties of pharmacy technicians include:

• Stocking and keeping inventory of prescription and over-the-counter medications.
• Receiving electronic and written prescriptions, as well as requests for refills.
• Counting tablets, labeling bottles, and in some instances (usually with separate certifications) compounding medicines and mixing intravenous solutions.
• Chemotherapy certifications are also offered, and require special training in order to handle drugs that are classified as hazardous.
• Verifying the accuracy of prescriptions.
• Interacting with other medical professions physicians, pharmacists, and insurance companies.
• Providing medication and other health products directly to patients, and referring patients for a pharmacist consult should it be needed.

Working as a pharmacist technician also requires significant “people skills” to build productive relationships of trust and respect with medical professionals, physicians, pharmacists, and patients. Effective communication and empathy are especially needed in a pharmacy setting which is fast-paced and filled with people who are sometimes not at their very best. Effectively communicating and empathizing goes a long way to building relationships and a reputation not only for professionalism but for compassion and understanding. Having these skills does not mean that you are only managing other people, but that you are managing yourself and how you interact on a daily basis while coping with sometimes stressful situations.

Licensure and Certification
The PTCE was developed for much the same reason as the NCLEX examinations for nurses. Standardized examinations serve to verify that students have been educated and trained to a particular standard of professionalism, proficiency, and skill. This is the only examination required by the state of Arizona, though the National Health Career Association also offers a pharmacy technician certification which is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. Requirements for certification vary by state, so candidates applying for jobs out of state will need to contact that state’s board of pharmacy to determine prerequisites for licensure.

Photo by Matej Kastelic | Shutterstock