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Alante Gray

Mr. Foote

Capstone-Rough Draft

10 April, 2019

Alante Gray
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Peter Foote

Senior Capstone

March 12, 2019

Dominant Tech

A pharmacy technician is a healthcare professional who performs under the supervision

of a licensed pharmacist. Pharmacy technicians are people who use their knowledge and training

to care for their patient’s health and wellbeing. Pharmacy technician Jerrod Corley, when talking

about the job of his daily role in a pharmacy stated “I do every job there is in a pharmacy,

working under the direct supervision of a pharmacist. I make mixtures and compounds for

medications and fulfill prescriptions” (Corley). The primary task for a pharmacy technician is to

heal patients from illnesses and reduce human suffering. Pharmacy Technicians assist the

pharmacy staff by filling prescriptions, verifying prescriptions, and providing quality

customer service.

When people hear of filling a prescription, they visualize a pharmacist with glasses and a

bright, white lab coat smiling happily while bagging up prescriptions. While this may be true,

most people don’t even know that pharmacy technicians are the ones that fill their prescriptions

and do so much more. “Pharmacy technicians are serving as clerks and cashiers. Working

directly with patients and insurance companies, entering and filling prescriptions, and

communicating with physician’s offices are just a few of the new roles today’s technicians have

taken on” (Barker). Believe it or not, the process of filling a prescription is actually based on

what kind of pharmacy one works in. In mail-order pharmacies, the prescription is sent to the

pharmacy or phoned in by the provider. In local pharmacies, the doctor sends in the prescription,
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also known as a script, and the pharmacy technician reviews the script and then enter it into the

computer. Next, the technician would then perform a drug utilization review (DUR) which

means that they double check the drug and make sure it's going to benefit the patient. Then, the

pharmacy technician would generate the prescription label and retrieve the medication vial,

compound and fill the vial. Finally, the technician would receive a pharmacist check and then

deliver to the ill patient. “Technicians do pretty much everything except the final check”

(Derran). Every move made in a healthcare facility has to be the right move. Filling a

prescription comes with many responsibilities and tasks that all has to be done wisely.

“Pharmacy technicians just don’t count pills and put them in a bottle. There's a large

number of safety steps that need to take place before a patient picks up their medication”

(Thompson). Accuracy is extremely important in the pharmaceutical field. Small things such as

the way a prescription is written, questions of handwriting, or proper dosages can impact

people's lives. Pharmacy technicians take prescription verification very serious. One little

mistake and someone's son, daughter, sister, or brother could be gone forever. When verifying

medications, pharmacy technicians have to focus on every little detail and character on the script.

Dispensing errors can all be minimized if verified the right way by a well-trained technician

following proper procedures. Clint Conley is a formal pharmacy technician and instructor at the

Kent Career Tech Center. On the topic of accuracy and prescription verification he stated:

A prescription is a legal document. Once a technician accepts the

prescription and agrees to fill it, we have entered into a binding contract with that

patient to offer them the best medical care and judgment we can provide. No take-

backs. This means that we need to be accurate when filling the prescription, we

need to report anything that seems off to the pharmacist, and we need to double
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and triple check our work and the end product. The medications we dispense can

save lives, and they can end lives. We need to respect the process that ensures the

safety of our patients” ( Conley).

When working in a healthcare facility certain things cannot just be brushed off. If there is

something off pharmacy techs have to report it. If not someone’s life could potentially be at risk

of injury or even death.

Every business or operation dealing with customers and clients strive to deliver

outstanding customer service. No matter what the situation is the customers are always right.

“Connecting with customers personally is an important part of doing business” (Vizzini). When

customers come to a pharmacy they may not always be in the best of spirits because of medical

concerns or health issues. It is up to the pharmacy technician to deliver amazing customer service

and make sure the patient knows the staff is there to help. “Great customer service is very

important- we are the face that the customer/patient sees and we represent the pharmacy to them.

In addition, when we have a good relationship with our customers/patients we can help them

more effectively and safely use their medications, which ultimately saves lives and reduces

human suffering. Which is kind of a big deal” (Conley). Astounding customer service can

actually save and make the pharmacy a great amount of money. The patient doesn’t have to get

medication from that pharmacy. The customer most likely attend the pharmacy because it’s

maybe the closest one to their house but one bad customer service incident and the pharmacy just

lost customers. The pharmacy is never just losing one customer but several within one bad

customer service incident. It’s never just one because pharmacy customers are within a

household, so if a pharmacy tech upset a mom or something then you lost the husband and the

kids as well.
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Becoming a pharmacy technician isn’t just for anyone. The role of being a pharmacy

technician obtain many obstacles that has to be overcomed. Having the passion and dedication to

care for the patients is what makes the job special. Pharmacy technicians take pride in making an

impact on human suffering. Pharmacy Technicians assist the pharmacy staff by filling

prescriptions, verifying prescriptions, and providing quality customer service.

Works Cited
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Barker, Alex. "9 New Ways Pharmacy Technician Roles Are Changing." Pharmacy Times, 17
Jun. 2015.
Conley, Clint. Telephone interview. 17 Mar. 2019.

Corley, Jerrod. “Pharmacy Technician.” Careers & Colleges, vol. 25, no. 3, Jan. 2005, p. 25.

Thompson, Nathan. "Ten Steps to Ensuring Prescription Safety." YouTube. 14 Aug. 2009.
YouTube. 10 Apr. 2019 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCWIIbrRVLg>.

Vizzini, Nick. 10 Tips For Excellent Customer Service As a Pharmacy Technician, edited by

Nick Vizzini, horizonstaffingsolutions, 24 Apr. 2018.