Pharmacy Technician Exam

[Tavit]

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Hello Everyone,

I will be taking the November 19th, 2005 Pharmacy Technician exam and I have a few questions that I would really appreciate some knowledgeable feedback on.

1. Please let me know which study materials I should consider purchasing for the preparation of this exam.


2. Approximately how much study time would you say is required to do well on this exam... I will be devoting my time and efforts exclusively towards this goal for the next 3 months.

3. Any other insights regarding Pharmacy Technician exam is much appreciated.


Thank you

-Tavit

 

[b*rizzle]

Hello Everyone,

I will be taking the November 19th, 2005 Pharmacy Technician exam and I have a few questions that I would really appreciate some knowledgeable feedback on.

1. Please let me know which study materials I should consider purchasing for the preparation of this exam.


2. Approximately how much study time would you say is required to do well on this exam... I will be devoting my time and efforts exclusively towards this goal for the next 3 months.

3. Any other insights regarding Pharmacy Technician exam is much appreciated.


Thank you

-Tavit

1. Reifman's book is best: "Certification Review for Pharmacy Technicians". It's hard to find, but the more recent the edition, the better.

2. If you've had at least a few months' worth of experience as a technician then you really shouldn't spend more than 30 minutes to an hour a few days each week. If not, then you'll have to do as much as your time allows. I felt that there were some questions on the PTCE that you would have only known through working in a pharmacy (i.e. how many units of insulin are in a single bottle).

3. DON'T PANIC!! It's not a hard test. Just long. Make sure you sleep good the night before. Make flash cards with drugs and drug classes, also with conversion factors. Know the basic functions of each drug class (nothing really detailed, try and get it down to a sentence or two). Also, know major drug interactions, like aspirin/coumadin. I think it's a fair test, just be able to keep your focus. Also, DON'T FORGET that you can only bring a non-programmable calculator. One guy brought a T1-83+ and had to do without.

 

[crossjb]

I'm taking the exam September 17 and will let you know how it goes. I have pharmacy experience and will study solid from now until fall classes start up. I have heard from many techs that it is not difficult, but at the same time it doesn't hurt to overprepare! You can get Reifman's newest version of that book b*rizzle mentioned on Amazon.com. It's about $35. Or get it at the library... Good luck to you!

 

[funny_pharm]

I received my cert in March/April. I used Joe Medina's study guide and CD-ROM. Every test taken within your set will be slightly different. The test consisted mainly of conversions, DEA questions, aspetic procedures, and what your role as a pharm tech would entail. I started to study 3 days out and crammed the night before the test. Goodluck.

 

[Tavit]

Hi Brizzle, I appreciate your quick reply.

I searched for the manual and author as you recommended and came up with
this...

Certification Review Manual for Pharmacy Technicians - Seventh Edition (2005).
by Noah Reifman, R.Ph, MS

Thanks again for your guidance and direction.


Have a great day! 🙂

-Tavit

 

[Tavit]

Thank you for your insight.

I wish you the best on your exam and thank you in advance for letting me know how it goes.

-Tavit

I'm taking the exam September 17 and will let you know how it goes. I have pharmacy experience and will study solid from now until fall classes start up. I have heard from many techs that it is not difficult, but at the same time it doesn't hurt to overprepare! You can get Reifman's newest version of that book b*rizzle mentioned on Amazon.com. It's about $35. Or get it at the library... Good luck to you!

 

[virtue1]

I am taking my PTCE tomorrow and i don't know much about drugs/generic and therapeutic use of them but i pretty much understand all the math there is. I finished and have been doing the reifman practice questions and getting between 72 to 88 out of 125. Does anyone think this is enough to pass? I seems to be getting all the drug questions wrong. What do i do? what is the average pass score?

 

[PharmD321]

I did the 12 week course back in April 5th at University of Colorado at Denver and Joe Medina was my teacher. He is a great Pharmacist and Pharmacy Technician teacher and I would recommend him to anyone. I did the exam last week on the 26th of August during the Democratic National Convention. The results don't come in until the 8th of September.

In the test, we are not suppose to say anything that was on it, but I can give you a general idea about it.

There were about 2 drugs (out of 100 drugs I studied!!) that you need to know in the exam (trade name and generic and classification).
There are a couple questions about the DEA number.
Many calculation were on the exam (about 40-60 calculations on my test!) Don't forget to study the conversions of grams, mg, L, mL, ounce, grain, Kg, lbs, and any other units should be memorized.
You have to know all the formulas and I know that I missed one question that needed the tic tac toe formula. I just didn't remember how to do it and the worst part is that I remembered how to do it after the exam!
So REMEMBER ALL FORMULAS
The wierd thing is that, on my test, there weren't very many questions asking about the drug ordering process and the written prescription was not even on my test but that doesn't mean that it won't be on your test!.
It did have the MAR (medical administration record) question on it.
Drug Interactions (aspirin/warfarin)
Also, READ carefully, they try to trick you all the time!!!
Also, for me, I only had 10 minutes to review all the questions so if I were you, just read carefully every question and don't expect to review all the questions again because the time will always be going.

All and all, just study a lot but don't study until the last minute. Use the last minute to finish studying and go watch a movie with your girlfriend or boyfriend and relax and sleep plenty.

PS: Remember that if you don't get above 72 percent, you fail. It is not the end of the world. You can always take it again. Also, they don't grade it one point each question, they grade it by how you answer.

B-rizzle: are you sure this is correct? aspirin/coumadin? I thought it was aspirin and warfarin? or are both the same?

Edit: Mochiko, yes, your right, Coudmadin is the trade name.

 

[mochiko]

I am taking my PTCE tomorrow and i don't know much about drugs/generic and therapeutic use of them but i pretty much understand all the math there is.

You'll be fine. See: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=559780

B-rizzle: are you sure this is correct? aspirin/coumadin? I thought it was aspirin and warfarin? or are both the same?

Coumadin is the trade name for warfarin.