1st day as a Pharm Tech...... :(

[kies89]

Luckily, i got the pharm tech job on the day i started to look for one.
I went to local walgreens and the pharmacist manager actually liked me for some reason after looking at my resume and recommended me to her friend at different location (5min away)
and i did an interview... and got hired there. (they had some technical problems so it took me a week to get started. manager could not click "hire him" button)

anyways.. yesterday was my Day 1. Training day.
the computer training thing did not work so i went straight to the pharmacy section and started working.

oh man. i expected couple hours or light training but i ended up working almost 9 hours.. UNTIL CLOSING. they gave me lunch break at 430pm.. and i did not know i was working all day until i got there so could not even get a change to eat anything..
i am not sure but hopefully they pay while i am training!

i did all the cash count at the end and closed the pharmacy on my first training day..

anyways, it has been a while i took the PTCB exam so i definitely felt a need to refresh my memories on sig codes, controlled substances and so on.
they trained me a lot of things.. including computers and everything but everyone in the pharmacy moves so fast and do things so fast so i could not keep up myself to their pace.
i made some mistakes and forgot some of the things the other pharm tech taught me..

they should have taught me in order.. or one subject at a time but they just taught me this and suddenly taught me other things.. and back to previous one.. made me even more confusing

man.. i feel like it will take a while for me to get used to all the computer systems and everything..
and i believe the training session only lasts a week and i think they expect me to learn everything by then.

never knew Walgreen pharmacy was this busy.

anyways, this was my story..


can you guys give me some advises? anything will be appreciated..
what should i know and study by myself at home etc

and how long did it take for you guys to be a good pharmacy technician??(know pretty much everything you do.. and know how to do)

my day 2 is on monday.. and i work the whole week to friday (probably 9 hours per day) and i am very scared :/

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[Desoxyn]

Hey, don't worry. Ahaha, welcome to pharmacy. I work at CVS, and it took me a good 4-5 months to really know what I'm doing.

The real learning comes around when learning how to run the pharmacy inventory and dealing with Medicare/Medicaid. Don't worry, you'll be fine. If you can't handle it, then quit or request a less busier store. Ok, don't quit, but don't kill yourself either. I had to start taking Maxalt cause my migraines magically returned (after years of being dormant) when I started working at CVS.

 

[TigerPharm]

Don't worry, I felt 'suddenly thrown into the middle of things' on my 1st day as a CPhT as well haha. It's a fast-paced environment so it's easy to get overwhelmed. Fortunately you're just about past the flu season so things aren't as hectic as they've been the past few months. The training session really won't do you much good.. they can only teach you so much. It's with real world experience that you gradually learn what to do over time. Like 'Desoxyn' said, it takes a good several months before you finally get the hang of things and the computer language will click one day. Bring a little notebook to jot notes down because there's a TON of stuff to remember. I've worked part-time for 2 years and honestly, I don't know everything yet (and I probably never will until I actually become a pharmacist lol). So don't get too discouraged because every tech starts out this way. Ask your techs/pharmacist whenever you have a question. Work hard, treat your customers well, and you should be fine.

 

[jarraiga]

It will get easier as time goes by. If you dont know something, ask! Every chance you get, get to know the computer system, do not shy away from it. Don't get frustrated if you cannot understand insurance billing for the first couple of months. Learn to work well with your team, they rely on you and vice versa, pull your own weight and dont make them pick up your slack. Always smile, pretend you are happy, it will rub off on everyone, and your pharmacy survey scores. I DO NOT suggest taking notes, you will never have time to flip through it when you guys are super busy, just make sure when they are showing you, you are the one doing it and not just looking.

It will get easier, hang in there. Do not let customers push you around, they will say anything to get their way.

Good Luck

 

[Lonelypharmdstudent]

Luckily, i got the pharm tech job on the day i started to look for one.
I went to local walgreens and the pharmacist manager actually liked me for some reason after looking at my resume and recommended me to her friend at different location (5min away)
and i did an interview... and got hired there. (they had some technical problems so it took me a week to get started. manager could not click "hire him" button)

anyways.. yesterday was my Day 1. Training day.
the computer training thing did not work so i went straight to the pharmacy section and started working.

oh man. i expected couple hours or light training but i ended up working almost 9 hours.. UNTIL CLOSING. they gave me lunch break at 430pm.. and i did not know i was working all day until i got there so could not even get a change to eat anything..
i am not sure but hopefully they pay while i am training!

i did all the cash count at the end and closed the pharmacy on my first training day..

anyways, it has been a while i took the PTCB exam so i definitely felt a need to refresh my memories on sig codes, controlled substances and so on.
they trained me a lot of things.. including computers and everything but everyone in the pharmacy moves so fast and do things so fast so i could not keep up myself to their pace.
i made some mistakes and forgot some of the things the other pharm tech taught me..

they should have taught me in order.. or one subject at a time but they just taught me this and suddenly taught me other things.. and back to previous one.. made me even more confusing

man.. i feel like it will take a while for me to get used to all the computer systems and everything..
and i believe the training session only lasts a week and i think they expect me to learn everything by then.

never knew Walgreen pharmacy was this busy.

anyways, this was my story..


can you guys give me some advises? anything will be appreciated..
what should i know and study by myself at home etc

and how long did it take for you guys to be a good pharmacy technician??(know pretty much everything you do.. and know how to do)

my day 2 is on monday.. and i work the whole week to friday (probably 9 hours per day) and i am very scared :/

What's a pharmacy tech? I thought everyone working at the pharmacy are all pharmacists??????? I'm so confusion

 

[TigerPharm]

What's a pharmacy tech? I thought everyone working at the pharmacy are all pharmacists??????? I'm so confusion

Lol.. there's usually only one working pharmacist at a pharmacy (occasionally two may share the same shift slot but it's rare). The pharmacist is usually the one wearing a white coat (but not all of them wear it). The pharmacy technicians are all the "underlings" who assist the Pharmacist in helping to run the pharmacy. Usually they're the ones checking you out, taking your scripts, and doing all the running around. There's a vast difference in authority and knowledge as pharm techs work for maybe $10-17/hr while pharmacists have graduated from a professional school to earn ~$50-60/hr or such.

I DO NOT suggest taking notes, you will never have time to flip through it when you guys are super busy,

True, you won't have time to flip through your book for notes. But I liked taking my notebook home and studying from it. Or I bookmarked the pages for the more important/common duties so that I wouldn't really be wasting time flipping through pages. It's so that I wouldn't have to ask the other techs the same question over and over and my co-workers appreciated that. All the other techs/my boss commended me for it. It really depends on how efficient you feel note-taking will be.

 

[Jeanine B]

You're definitely not alone. Being thrown into the pharmacy with no prior experience is pretty overwhelming. Its how I started and I work at one of the busiest stores in my area and had never worked in a pharmacy before. Everyone assured me that I would catch on and learn everything by about 6 months.. they were right! I mean.. I still have questions here and there but after you do things a bunch of times it kind of just clicks.. and you can improvise and look around. Also, remember that you don't have to rush for everything. If a patient is standing there wanting answers about something, say "Okay, let me look into it for you". Go into their profile and see what you can figure out. If you can't figure it out, ask for help. They can wait. I also felt like I had to rush so people would be happy but soon enough I realized that the majority of the patients that come in aren't happy anyways, so why overwhelm myself? haha Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it!

One thing one of the newer techs did (who even went to pharmacy technician school).. she brought in a little notepad. Any time she didn't know how to do something, she'd write down little notes. I did the same thing when I first started working. For example, when a new patient drops off a prescription, I didn't know everything that I needed to ask to start a new profile, etc. So, I made a list and kept it in my pocket and whenever I had to be in charge of the drop-off window, I would put it next to the window so I was prepared. Take your time and you'll catch on! Promise

 

[kies89]

thank y0u so much guys! my second day went very well after reading this

 

[DanceMONSTAR]

I fainted my first day as a pharmacy technician lol It was scary when it happened, but now they just joke about it. I was like you and worked like nine hours my first day and for lunch I just bought a light snack, which did not help none. Many thought after that I would not last long, but almost a year later and I'm still there. I promise you will get the hang of it and learn to manage your self properly. It will get easier, but I didn't work at Walgreens so I don't know how training is there. But the pharmacy where I work they really train you so you know what your doing once time comes.