What Does a Pharmacy Technician Do?

Pharmacy Techs work under the supervision of a pharmacist and have a number of duties. Those responsibilities include:

• Collect patient information to accurately fill prescriptions.
• Correctly measure the medications.
• Double check to ensure the patient’s prescription is properly labeled with all the right corresponding information.
• Organize and inventory the medications. When applicable, report to the pharmacist.
• Gather health insurance information and accept payment.
• Precisely and cautiously collect patient information and enter into a computer system.
• Answer any questions the patient may have or direct them to the pharmacist.

Pharmacy techs generally work in pharmacies, but the location can vary: hospitals, the drug store around the corner, prisons, nursing homes, and anywhere else a person needs medications. It’s also possible to work in the pharmaceutical sales or pharmaceutical production industry.

Job Outlook and Pay:

As of May 2014, the median pay of a pharmacy tech was $29,810 per year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, the upper 10% of pharmacy techs earned more than $43,900 a year. Most pharmacy technicians work in full time positions, but may work irregular hours. Pharmacies open on nights and weekends may require that you work a shift or two during those times.

The job growth for a pharmacy tech is expected to grow 9% until 2024. The boom is because the population is aging. As such, more people will be on some form of prescription drugs than before. Not to mention the rise of chronic diseases, so that more prescription medications are being prescribed by physicians.

Statistics have pointed out that pharmacy technicians may be asked to perform and take on more responsibility. This is because pharmacists are now required to administer flu shots and other duties. As a result, pharmacy techs might have job duties traditionally performed by pharmacists.