pharmacy technician question

[mdsweetie1]

Hey guys. This might be a stupid question but do you need tech certification to work as a pharmacy technician? I thought a lot of pharmacies hired people without experience and were willing to train and they were able to work?
A lady at my school's pharmacy told me today that big chains like cvs train and help with the process but that eventually they will have to take a class to get certified though? apparently the law has recently made it this way...thats what the lady said?

i'm a bit confused about this process so if i walked up to a cvs or any pharmacy and asked for a job as a pharmacy technician they would might only hire me as an assistant and then make me go through the certification to become one?

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[ILikeDrugs]

Hey guys. This might be a stupid question but do you need tech certification to work as a pharmacy technician? I thought a lot of pharmacies hired people without experience and were willing to train and they were able to work?
A lady at my school's pharmacy told me today that big chains like cvs train and help with the process but that eventually they will have to take a class to get certified though? apparently the law has recently made it this way...thats what the lady said?

i'm a bit confused about this process so if i walked up to a cvs or any pharmacy and asked for a job as a pharmacy technician they would might only hire me as an assistant and then make me go through the certification to become one?

There are threads about this topic, and they will tell you that it depends on your state.
In my state, California, you need to be licensed by the state board, and in order to become licensed you need to either pass pharmacy tech schooling through a college or military branch or you can teach yourself the material and pass the PTCB exam.

I taught myself the material in the month of August, took the test and became certified in September and then became licensed in November.

 

[Electrode]

Here in Illinois, you don't need to be certified. You can obtain the pharm tech license with a $40 fee, if you meet certain requirements.

But of course, certified pharm techs always have the advantage of getting the job faster. It takes quite some luck to get a job just with the license alone (without any certificate), unless you have connections at the place you are interested in or something of that nature.

 

[rowerpharm]

Here in Illinois, you don't need to be certified. You can obtain the pharm tech license with a $40 fee, if you meet certain requirements.

But of course, certified pharm techs always have the advantage of getting the job faster. It takes quite some luck to get a job just with the license alone (without any certificate), unless you have connections at the place you are interested in or something of that nature.

That actually is the case right now in Illinois, but it will be changing in January/February 2010 I believe. After that date, it will be required that all pharmacy technicians become certified. However, if you are already working as a pharmacy technician prior to that date, you will be grandfathered in and will not have this requirement.

 

[hooraycoconuts]

There are threads about this topic, and they will tell you that it depends on your state.
In my state, California, you need to be licensed by the state board, and in order to become licensed you need to either pass pharmacy tech schooling through a college or military branch or you can teach yourself the material and pass the PTCB exam.

I taught myself the material in the month of August, took the test and became certified in September and then became licensed in November.

May I ask how you taught yourself because I would like to do that and your advice would help others and myself a lot 🙂 Thank you.

 

[GlamDoc]

May I ask how you taught yourself because I would like to do that and your advice would help others and myself a lot 🙂 Thank you.

Get yourself a good review book, and study! 🙂

Focus on the math (it's key), patient profiles, abbreviations, how to handle certain drugs, some laws. Very few drug names. Don't spend too much time on that, you're allowed some room to guess! 😉

If anything, math! You can do it. 👍

 

[pdng]

There are threads about this topic, and they will tell you that it depends on your state.
In my state, California, you need to be licensed by the state board, and in order to become licensed you need to either pass pharmacy tech schooling through a college or military branch or you can teach yourself the material and pass the PTCB exam.

I taught myself the material in the month of August, took the test and became certified in September and then became licensed in November.

sorry i dont get what is different between become certified and becoem licensed. can you tell me ?

 

[hooraycoconuts]

Get yourself a good review book, and study! 🙂

Focus on the math (it's key), patient profiles, abbreviations, how to handle certain drugs, some laws. Very few drug names. Don't spend too much time on that, you're allowed some room to guess! 😉

If anything, math! You can do it. 👍

What's a good review book that you would recommend? Thanks again 😳

 

[ILikeDrugs]

May I ask how you taught yourself because I would like to do that and your advice would help others and myself a lot 🙂 Thank you.

I used The Pharmacy Technician 2nd Ed and its companion Workbook, and I studied in the month of August of '08. Took the test and passed in September of '08 with the following scores:

Total 818
Assist Pharmacist in Serving Patients 828
Maintain Med. Inventory Control Systems 836
Admin. Mgmt. of Pharmacy Practice 737 (yikes! )

Passing score is 650, and it's out of 900.
Know calculations, law, how to read prescriptions, and pharmacy management guidelines.
I was also asked about generic/tradenames.
for some odd reason they asked about medical conditions and asked which one of the four drugs should be given. Pretty lame if you ask me since that is beyond the scope of what a tech does.

 

[ILikeDrugs]

sorry i dont get what is different between become certified and becoem licensed. can you tell me ?

Being certified means that you pass the PTCB exam, and being licensed means you are licensed with the state board of pharmacy.

Somebody above mentioned that it's easier to get a job with a certificate than with a license, but I don't really understand why since in order for one to get a license (here in CA) one must present a PTCB certificate or show that they attended pharm tech schooling through a college or military branch. Maybe that person confused the two, then again their state may have different rules to follow.

 

[GlamDoc]

What's a good review book that you would recommend? Thanks again 😳

There are several, and I don't think any one book would cover exactly what you need to know for the test. Some have too much info, some have too little. And then the test throws you those little oddball questions, which you might have to guess on.

The book I used, however, was "Delmar's Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam Review" by Patricia K. Anthony (the most recent version). It's pretty good, except it goes into too much biological detail about drug effects, which you really don't need to know much about.

 

[kismet]

Being certified means that you pass the PTCB exam, and being licensed means you are licensed with the state board of pharmacy.

Somebody above mentioned that it's easier to get a job with a certificate than with a license, but I don't really understand why since in order for one to get a license (here in CA) one must present a PTCB certificate or show that they attended pharm tech schooling through a college or military branch. Maybe that person confused the two, then again their state may have different rules to follow.

Not all states require licensing, so if you're in a state where you don't need a license, being certified gives you a big advantage over someone who isn't. In states where licensing is required, I don't think certification is as big a deal.

 

[PharmD321]

I used The Pharmacy Technician 2nd Ed and its companion Workbook, and I studied in the month of August of '08. Took the test and passed in September of '08 with the following scores:

Total 818
Assist Pharmacist in Serving Patients 828
Maintain Med. Inventory Control Systems 836
Admin. Mgmt. of Pharmacy Practice 737 (yikes! )

Passing score is 650, and it's out of 900.
Know calculations, law, how to read prescriptions, and pharmacy management guidelines.
I was also asked about generic/tradenames.
for some odd reason they asked about medical conditions and asked which one of the four drugs should be given. Pretty lame if you ask me since that is beyond the scope of what a tech does.

are the questions about high blood pressure? Mine had one and I had no clue because my book never said anything about high blood pressure!

 

[ILikeDrugs]

Not all states require licensing, so if you're in a state where you don't need a license, being certified gives you a big advantage over someone who isn't. In states where licensing is required, I don't think certification is as big a deal.

Right. Here in CA being cert. won't get you any tech job. I'm coming to learn that not even a license with no experience will get me a job. Getting a tech job here in CA is becoming a pain. I'm guessing after I do 6 months of volunteer work I'll probably qualify.

 

[Artful Dodger]

I say...if you can't work as a pharmacy tech, work as a service clerk (at a chain or local drug store) or volunteer in the pharmacy (preferably hospital). That's if you feel it isn't worth your time to become a tech. Pharmacy schools just want to know you've been exposed to seeing how a pharmacy operates...and from that, you've probably found something that you admired about the profession through seeing a pharmacist do his/her job. So, don't worry about titles, labels, etc. It's really the experience. And remember, don't do something because it looks good on your record; do it because you want to find out if you belong in the profession - just some personal advice for you (in case you can't find the words for it). Good luck!