Pharmacy Technician |
Who Are Pharmacy Technicians?Is This Program in My Area?What Do Pharmacy Technicians Do? A Pharmacy Technician’s responsibilities include receiving, filling or refilling medical prescriptions prescribed by a physician. Pharmacy Technicians retrieve, count, pour, weigh and measure the medication. They label bottles to clearly communicate the instructions for the prescription. Pharmacy Technicians also perform administrative duties, stock shelves and operate cash registers. If the patients have questions regarding their medications or prescriptions then the Pharmacy Technicians refer them to the Pharmacist. It’s recommended that Pharmacy Techs possess strong customer service and teamwork skills since they interact with patients, coworkers, and health care professionals. Pharmacy Technician Training Those seeking pharmacy tech training are able to receive it at vocational schools, technical colleges, trade schools, community and junior colleges and other types of pharmacy technician schools. Pharmacy technician training programs require classroom and laboratory work in areas like medical and pharmaceutical terminology, pharmaceutical calculations, pharmacy recordkeeping, pharmaceutical techniques, and pharmacy law and ethics. Pharmacy Technician schools also teach medication names, actions, uses, and doses. Upon graduation, pharmacy technician schools issue a diploma, associates degree, or pharmacy tech certification. Pharmacy Technician Certification Pharmacy Tech certification of granted by two different certification boards, the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board and the Institute for the Certification of Pharmacy Technicians. To earn Pharmacy Tech certification the candidate must pass a national pharmacy technician certification exam. Pharmacy Technician schools are an excellent resource to prepare for the exam. This pharmacy tech certification is recognized in all states and improves a person’s chance at employment. It is required to renew this pharmacy technician certification every 2-3 years. Recertification required 20 hours of continuing education credits that can be obtained through pharmacy technician schools. Pharmacy Technician Job Prospects Qualified pharmacy techs are always in high demand and are able to find employment in pharmacies in drugstore chains, grocery stores, department stores, hospitals and medical clinics. Pharmacy techs have several opportunities for career advancement. Some increase their training and experience and are able to be promoted to supervisory or training positions. Some pharmacy techs are able to advance into specialty positions such as chemo therapy technician and nuclear pharmacy technician or return to school to become pharmacists. Others move into pharmaceutical sales. Pharmacy Technician Job Security and Salary The job opportunities for trained pharmacy techs are growing faster than jobs for most industries. The Bureau of Labor is projecting growth in this industry to reach or exceed 32 percent over the next 8 years. Pharmacy Technician schools are trying to fill the demand for techs by pharmacies. Those who complete Pharmacy Technician schools can expect salaries between $21,000 to $37,000 per year. |