Pharmacy technicians in the NHS work mainly in one of two areas, hospital pharmacy and community pharmacy although opportunities also exist in other areas such as GP practices and in primary care trusts. All work by a pharmacy technician is overseen by a registered and fully qualified pharmacist.
In their primary role, pharmacy technicians receive and fulfil patient prescriptions that might have originated from a hospital, consultant physician, advanced practitioner nurse or directly from the patient themselves. After the prescription is fulfilled, the pharmacy technician prices it up and files it. A registered and qualified pharmacist checks the completed prescription before it is given to the patient.
Senior pharmacy technicians have more diverse duties including being are involved in the procurement, manufacture, dispensing and safe administration of medicines. They are responsible for the correct selection of the product, appropriate measurement and the product labelled with instructions. Occasionally, the pharmacy technician will advise the patient about diet and health requirements and for this reason, many employers prefer that pharmacy technicians be certified. Pharmacy technicians typically:
- Monitor drug stocks on a hospital ward
- Carry out non-medical related tasks, such as administrative dutiess
- Retrieve prescription orders
- Select the proper prescription container
- Create prescription labels
- Prepare insurance claim forms
- Maintain patient profiles
- Complete cash register transactions, telephone answering
- Make themselves aware of the latest medicines and their availability
Hospital Pharmacy Technicians
Hospitals obtain many of their supplies from the pharmaceutical industry in a form ready for administration. However, some products, which are not commercially available, need to be made within the pharmacy. Examples include creams, ointments and mixtures from raw ingredients. Pharmacy technicians also advise nurses on the correct storage of medicines, check expiry dates and discuss the changing needs of the wards with the nurses and staff. Hospital pharmacy technicians are also extending their roles to work with pharmacists and other healthcare staff to help patients to manage their own medicines.
Career wise, there are several grades for qualified pharmacy technicians, even expanding into the role is clinical technician – this involves working on wards, liaising with other healthcare professionals and closer contact with patients. At the highest level, a chief technician is often responsible for managing a section of the pharmacy department. Senior technicians can specialise in areas such as:
- Medicines management
- Manufacturing within the department
- Quality control
- Staff training
- Information technology
- Supplies procurement
- Clinical trials
- Medicines information services.
Community Pharmacy Technicians
Community pharmacy technicians work under the supervision of registered pharmacists in retail pharmacies. They label and dispense prescribed medicines and provide information and advice to patients about how to use their medication. Technicians may also be involved in selling over-the-counter medicines and other items stocked by the chemist, such as cosmetics, toiletries, baby food and photographic supplies. They can advise the public about over the counter medicines.
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