Pharmacy Technician Assistant Job Description, Key Duties and Responsibilities

By | September 1, 2023
Pharmacy Technician Assistant job description, duties, tasks, and responsibilities
Pharmacy Technician Assistants provide assistance to pharmacy technicians and pharmacists. Image source: Pharmacyassistantvancouver.com

This post provides complete information on the pharmacy technician assistant job description, including the key tasks, duties, and responsibilities they commonly perform.

What Does a Pharmacy Technician Assistant Do?

The pharmacy technician assistant offers assistance to accredited pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.

The job description usually assigned to pharmacy technician assistants may require them to carry out some duties related to hospital or community pharmacies.

They may not be qualified to fill prescriptions or provide customer service as a pharmacist is expected to function.

The role of a pharmacy technician assistant includes other common titles such as healthcare assistant, assistant technical officer, dispensing assistant, and dispenser.

Daily responsibilities for job holders in this category may involve coordinating with wholesalers, delivering products, ordering and assembling medical products, prepackaging and labeling products as well as forwarding inquires to pharmacists and technicians.

The duties of these assistants can be very diverse, depending on the employer.

They work together with pharmacists and may be allowed to distribute medicine.

They are also required to fill prescriptions, count pills, rotate inventory, restock medications, and handle paper work.

In most environments, an assistant to a pharmacy technician aids a pharmacist in distributing medications to patients at a retail or hospital pharmacy level.

He/she will require a pharmacist’s endorsement to dispense any medication.

He/she may not be allowed to carry out consultations with patients with regards to their medication.

Nevertheless, the role of this worker is crucial to the proper functioning of the pharmacy where they work.

They work in retail or community setups such as a chain drug store pharmacy or departmental stores.

They must be able to maintain effectiveness and precision, and carry out calculations, and be able to interpret written prescriptions in a very busy pharmacy environment.

They will be obligated to respond to phone calls from clients or physicians and resolve problems regarding insurance companies.

Pharmacy technician assistants may also be required to receive new or refill prescription orders through phone calls, depending on the location in which they are practicing.

The major part of the pharmacy technician assistant’s job description involves offering commendable customer service through compassion and effectiveness.

In an institutional or hospital setup, their duties may be relatively different from that in a retail environment.

In an outpatient pharmacy, where patients may be required to take their prescriptions home, the assistant will be required to perform the same duties as those in retail.

Therefore, an inpatient pharmacy technician assistant will offer medicine to all the hospital patients including the ones in the outpatient sites, operating room, or the ones in the emergency room.

These medication orders are available to the pharmacy via pneumatic tube system, fax machine, or even electronically.

Pharmacy Technician Assistant Job Description Example/Sample/Template

The job description example below shows essential duties, tasks, and responsibilities that make up the work schedule of the majority of pharmacy technician assistants:

  • Apply labels on medications and assist in receiving goods.
  • Maintain stock levels, uncover packaging lines, and reply queries about drugs or medicines.
  • Enter data on customer and prescription into the computer system.
  • Apply labels and fill a prescription container.
  • Organize inventory and mix special medications.
  • Collect payments for prescriptions from clients.

Pharmacy Technician Assistant Job Description for Resume

Information about the job activities of pharmacy technician assistants shown above can be used in making the employment history section of the resume for the post.

Pharmacy Technician Assistant Requirements: Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities for Career Success

On the job training is usually offered by employers to individuals working in this position who may choose to work towards becoming a pharmacy technician.

The following are key qualities – skills, knowledge, and abilities – usually required from applicants’ for the assistant to the pharmacy technician job:

  • A second level NVQ Certificate in pharmacy service skills coupled with exceptional ability to concentrate on details.
  • Commendable IT expertise.
  • Ability to give high attention to facts and possession of sound ethics.
  • Sufficient competency in mathematical skills with keen interest in healthcare.