Do you know what it takes to become a pharmaceutical tech?

Also known by other names like pharmaceutical technicians, pharmacy Tech, pharmacy technicians are the trained professionals who assist licensed pharmacists provide medicines and other health care products to patients.
They presence in hospitals, clinics, grocery stores, health insurance companies, and retail pharmacies and drugstores ensures the smooth functioning of drug distribution activities in the related place.

• Duties & responsibilities: Duties of pharmaceutical technicians vary according to the type of the work location such as hospital, retail environment, or nursing home medical store. Some state rules and regulations also govern what pharmacy techs can do. In a retail environment, Pharma techs receive prescription slips from doctor’s office, customers, and check them for accuracy. According to the information written on prescription order, they prepare the orders by measuring medication quantities, mixing liquid medications, counting out pills, packaging and labeling of medicines etc. It is the duty of the technician to re-check the order according to the prescription. Once the prescription order is fulfilled, they make calculations for price and file the prescription.
  These professionals also responsible for behind-the-scenes tasks such as ordering inventory, handling insurance claims, maintaining patient records, and keeping the shelves of the store stocked.

How to become a pharmaceutical tech:


If you are wondering how to become a pharmaceutical tech, pharmacy technician training program can help you step-in this competitive industry that is challenging, stimulating, and important to society.

• Pharma TechTraining: Degrees and Coursework: Once you decide to pursue a career as a pharmaceutical aide, you can join training programs offered by: community colleges, hospital, the military and vocational schools. Most technicians learn the skills to perform duties through on-the-job training. Another widely accepted and flexible option of completing the course is an online training program which allows students to attend online lectures as per their schedules and easiness.
  
• The coursework of the training program: is wide-ranging, including science, math, medicine, communications, law and administration. Some of the most common subjects in the coursework include: Pharmacy calculations, Handling controlled substances, Medical and pharmaceutical terminology, Pharmacy law and ethics, Recordkeeping, Communication, Insurance and inventory procedures and others.

During the pharmacy technician training, a student will learn about:

• Law and Ethics
• Pharmacology
• Systems/Anatomy
• Medical/Pharmacological Terminology
• Pharmacy Technology
• Receiving and Interpreting Medication Orders
• Pharmaceutical Calculations
• Filling and Distributing Medication Orders
• Inventory, Purchasing and Reimbursement Packaging
• Over the Counter Medications
• Aseptic IV preparation
• Prescription study skills
• Professionalism and the Workplace, and others.

Essential Skills: Being a pharma aide requires the strong customer service, teamwork skills, the ability to be on one’s feet for the whole day, climbing ladders to retrieve stocks, good communication skills, ability to handle heavy workload, and others.

Sources : - http://www.slideshare.net/SamuelSmih/do-you-know-what-it-takes-to-become-a-pharmaceutical-tech  

Types and benefits of going through pharmacy assistant training

Pharmacy technicians, or more commonly known by the name of pharmacy assistants, majorly work in pharmacists to help them out in their routine medical jobs, such as filling up of prescriptions and ensuring that all patient information is correct.

Undergoing pharmacy assistant training, would not only prepare the aspiring candidates to explore opportunities in pharmacy, but also in hospitals, pharmacists' office and nursing homes.

Types of training
Almost all the professional pharmacists would give their pharmacy technician, training session during their jobs where they have to follow the instructions given by them. Such training sessions are more formal in nature. On the other hand, if you choose to undergo professional training, there are many medical institutes, colleges and schools that offer such programs. The time frame of the programs can range from eight months training to a year almost. Different institutes offer prefer different types of degrees such as diploma, etc. One can also choose online training or class room sessions as well.

Curriculum for training
The curriculum an intern will have to study would include a variety of subjects. Some of the pharmacy assistant courses would include dosage calculations, CPR and first aid, and courses related to computer technology. An assistant may also have to learn about the laws and ethics related to pharmacy industry. The course would include understanding the work structure of a pharmacist, human anatomy, career development and pharmacology. Additionally, the curriculum of a pharmacy assistant training may also include additional courses explaining medical abbreviations, about compounding and about building healthy relations with your pharmacist.

Benefits of training
Undergoing training session would prepare you mentally and technically about the job you are going to perform. For instance, the valuable skills you learn during training can be applied on the entry level jobs. After example, after the completion of training, you would know how to weigh and mix pills, liquids and other medications. The candidates would be aware of writing and interpreting prescriptions and communicating the instructions clearly with others. Additionally, the training session would help build improved interpersonal and communication skills as well as organizational and project management skills. These skills are essential, because in addition to pharmaceutical knowledge, pharmacy assistants also have to document the information related to monitoring and packing of inventories, filing up documents and recording keeping, etc.

As evident by all the above-mentioned fact, one would know that the benefits of undergoing training are countless. So for any individual who wishes to become a part of pharmacy industry, getting hands on a fruitful training session, via a reputed institute should be the first priority.

Read more about pharmacy technician training school and courses and the best institute for medical career.

CNA: Work description and training requirements

A nursing assistant is an important member of a medical team who performs jobs under the direct supervision of a physician or licensed nurses. They support nurses by providing direct practical care to the patients.

Some routine tasks of their work activities include helping patients to eat, bathe, and dress, serving meals, tidying up rooms, making beds, delivering messages, answering calls. Some medical tasks of their job profile are taking a patient’s temperature, blood pressure, measuring of pulse and respiration rate, guiding a patient to operating and examining rooms, setting up machines for use, cleaning and sterilizing medical equipment before and after use, and others.

One of the most in-demand medical careers, nursing assistants is the right choice if you want to step-in the medical profession. To work efficiently and to ensure best quality services, having training is of utmost importance.

In addition to excellent practical patient care, NAs must have good communication skills and patience. All suck skills can be gained through training. Certified nurse training is an advanced education programs that authorize your abilities and skills to work in this profession. To become a CNA, an applicant must have, at least high school diploma or equivalent, positive qualities in helping people, ability to work as a team, and others.

Moreover, employers give preferences to those applicants who have specialized theoretical as well as practical training to work in this field. There are number of accredited schools and community colleges that offer students online training. Some programs can be completed in two months while other can last up to 1 year. The length of the training depend upon the rules and regulations of the state board, the type of the curriculum, and the number of hours each day offered by the program.

Students enrolled in nursing assistant training programs participate in lectures, laboratory and clinical experiences. Subjects of the coursework include Patient care ethics and legalities, Anatomy and physiology, Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), Medical vocabulary, Infection control techniques, Automated external defibrillator (AED) practices, Nutrition basics, Patient vital signs, Range of motion exercises, Patient hygiene etc.

During training, students will provided the opportunity to work in medical offices so that they have real world experience before actually work in hospitals. Apart from MA training, there are many other training programs like pharmacy assistant course, medical assistant training, EKG technician course to name a few, that offer you choice your work in the medical field.

Certified nurse assistant training mostly known as CNA training can make you job-ready in as little as 10 Weeks!