It’s an easy choice for a pharmacist to make if he has to decide on whom to hire between two applicants, someone with a pharmacy technician certification or someone who doesn’t possess any. But to state the obvious, the pharmacist will always choose the certified pharmacy technician. Even though a certification or even just a formal training is not a requirement to be a pharmacy technician, pharmacists and employers prefer those individuals that are certified by either the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board or the Institute for the Certification of Pharmacy Technicians.
Of course, finishing a formal training from an accredited training school is a welcome bonus. We’ve heard that pharmacy technician certification is important to a pharmacy technician, but is it important to pharmacists as well. Pharmacists regard pharmacy technician certification as an “important component in reducing medication errors, ensuring patient safety, and increasing positive health outcomes”, according to a recent survey sponsored by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board. More than 80% of pharmacists that were surveyed confirmed what was believed by many already, that certified pharmacy technicians have a positive impact on patient care.
According to the survey too, pharmacists were able to spend more time and focus on patient care and safety when they have well-trained and certified pharmacy technicians to rely on. The survey results were unveiled at the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) Annual Meeting held last March 2010. The survey was conducted by Drs.
The pharmacists know because the pharmacy technicians and they are working together daily in the pharmacy, hence, they should know definitely how valuable the technicians are in their daily operations. The pharmaceutical industry and the people that are concerned consider this survey conducted by Drs.
The most sued industry in the country today may be the healthcare industry because patients have come to an impression that healthcare providers are guarantors of positive results always, and when they don’t get that result, they may file malpractice lawsuits. This is also the reason why pharmacists and other healthcare providers prefer to hire employees that are formally trained and certified because a certification from a reputable certifying body is their protection against potential lawsuits that may be filed in the future.
Now, if these employers know and appreciate the importance of pharmacy technician certification, there’s really no reason why a pharmacy technician wouldn’t secure his own certification. Yes, a certification is not a requirement to be a pharmacy technician, but different State Boards of Pharmacy will soon require all pharmacy technicians be formally trained and certified first.
However, as what the survey showed, those pharmacists are only a small percentage of the total number of pharmacists. Additionally, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the need for pharmacy technicians will continue to increase in the coming years. Not only are pharmacy technicians very much needed and valued inside pharmacies, the need for them will continue in the foreseeable future.
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