Pharmacy Technicians are skilled professionals trained to perform clerical duties and tasks related to preparing and dispensing pharmaceutical drugs. Pharmacy Technicians are usually included in all pharmacy functions except those which require the proficiency of a licensed pharmacist.
Pharmacy Technicians work under the supervision of pharmacists, who must review prescriptions before they are given to patients. In most states, technicians can compound or mix some medications and call physicians for prescription refill authorizations. Technicians also may need to operate automated dispensing equipment when filling prescription orders.
Pharmacy Technicians routinely perform a variety of important tasks, including:
- Collecting prescription information needed to fill prescriptions
- Measuring amounts of medication for prescriptions
- Packaging and labeling prescriptions
- Organizing inventory and alerting pharmacists to any shortages of medications or supplies
- Accepting payment for prescriptions and processing insurance claims
- Entering customer or patient information, including any prescriptions taken, into a computer system
- Answering phone calls from customers
- Arranging for customers to speak with pharmacists if customers have questions about medications or health matters
The Pharmacy Technician program at Nevada Career Institute can provide you with the hands-on training and education required to become a certified Pharmacy Tech.
During the course of this program, you will learn the skills and procedures commonly performed by Pharmacy Technicians in hospitals, retail pharmacies and pharmaceutical laboratories, including how to perform pharmaceutical calculations, prescription processing, drug labeling, sterile and non-sterile drug compounding, and dispensing over-the-counter pharmaceuticals.
In addition, the program teaches medical terminology, pharmacy-related general medicine, along with the laws and regulations governing the pharmacy industry, such as FDA and DEA regulations and ethical codes of conduct.
Certification Exam Pass Rate
The Pharmacy Technician program at NCI is a new program; therefore the current pass rate for the Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam (PTCE) is unavailable at this time.
* Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Pharmacy Technicians, on the Internet at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/pharmacy-technicians.htm (visited March 2019).
** Nevada Career Institute cannot guarantee employment.
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