technicians are required to be trained and certified, when in reality, these regulations vary from state to state.

“This data shows without a doubt that American consumers—91 percent of those surveyed— support strong regulations across the country to protect patient safety by requiring that pharmacy technicians be trained and certified,” Melissa Murer Corrigan, executive director and chief executive officer of PTCB, told Pharmacy Tech News. “Consumers recognize how important it is to have a standard that they can rely on at their pharmacy, in hospitals, and everywhere that medication is dispensed.”

In addition, consumers polled by PTCB supported the idea that pharmacy operators only hire certified pharmacy technicians—92 percent overall, including 76 percent who “strongly agreed.’

The research indicates pretty clearly that consumers have high expectations for the qualifications of the pharmacy technicians that help fill their prescriptions. In

fact, 45 percent said they thought

that only people with formal training were allowed to work as pharmacy techs, and a majority,

58 percent, said they thought only licensed pharmacists were involved in dispensing prescriptions.

One expert believes all of this attention has been a blessing for pharmacy technicians as a profession. Dr. Helen McCarthy runs Pharmacy Technician Enterprises, a New York State-accredited, six-week, 96-hour program designed to train techs for working in a pharmacy environment and to pass the PTCB test or National Healthcareer Association exam, another nationally certified test.

According to McCarthy, all the recent news stories about medication errors is a positive, because it speaks directly to the need for more trained and certified technicians. “ Technicians need to be trained to perform their tasks in the pharmacy and

take the pressure off the pharmacists,” noted McCarthy. McCarthy’s program teaches technician basic skills, such as understanding branded and generic drugs, dosage forms, interpreting and taking prescription orders from physicians, and training in dispensing.

The goal of being certified, according to the PTCB, is to free up the pharmacist so they can take more time reviewing the filled prescription before handing it to the customer and more time to counsel patients about their medications.

Ultimately, McCarthy would like the standard definition of a pharmacy technician changed to include an individual working in a pharmacy, who under the supervision of a licensed pharmacist performs activities in line with a prerequisite knowledge and skills, and assists in pharmacy activities that do not require the professional judgment of a pharmacist.

But while McCarthy believes

mandatory certification of pharmacy technicians is a slam-dunk, not everyone would agree. At the very least, a single national law, particularly, as outlined under the La Tourette bill, could have a significant impact from a staffing standpoint. The law, as proposed by La Tourette would call for an education requirement for pharmacy technicians: minimum high-school diploma or GED. Part-time, entry-level pharmacy tech positions are often a way for teenagers interested in pursuing a career in pharmacy—either as a full-time certified tech someday, or perhaps even enrolling in pharmacy school—and an important labor source for drug stores looking to fill busy, afternoon and weekend timeslots. Indeed, several of today’s leading retail pharmacy executives used part-time, high-school pharmacy technician jobs as springboards to more meaningful careers. l