Pharmacy Technician Course Curriculum

Our Pharmacy Technician course curriculum is developed by professionals who know exactly what it takes to thrive in this growing field. It's one of the many things that sets Ashworth College apart from other pharmacy technician schools online.

Pharmacy Technician Orientation

In this course, you’ll examine the goals and values of Ashworth College, time management, creating a realistic weekly and monthly study schedule, the nature and purpose of assessments, how to study effectively to prepare for and take an online examination, and developing the skill sets necessary for success in the twenty-first century. You’ll also learn more about the allied health career options that are available to you and the necessary information you’ll need to be ethical, professional, and successful in those roles.

By the end of this course, you'll be able to do the following:

Identify skills needed to be a confident and independent online learner.
Differentiate between the various available allied health professions.
Describe the legal and ethical issues that arise when working in a health care facility.

Lesson Group 1: Introduction to Pharmacy

In this course, you’ll study the history and evolution of the pharmacy profession as well as the responsibilities of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. You’ll also familiarize yourself with common medical and pharmaceutical terms and symbols and review the regulations and standards of the pharmacy profession.

By the end of this course, you'll be able to do the following:

Summarize the origins, history, and evolution of the pharmacy profession.
Describe the roles and duties of pharmacy professionals.
Identify common medical terms and symbols used in pharmaceutical documentation and prescription orders.
Recognize the purpose of pharmacy regulations.

Lesson Group 2: Drug Classification and Pharmaceutical Calculations

This course features discussions on how drugs are named, administered, classified, and identified. You’ll also learn how to perform conversions and calculations in regard to ratios, proportions, decimals, percentages, and systems of measurement.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to do the following:

Identify drugs by their generic and trade names, classifications, and other characteristics.
Differentiate between routes of drug administration.
Convert and calculate drug doses in both the household and metric systems.
Convert and calculate values from ratios, proportions, decimals, and percentages.

Lesson Group 3: Pharmacology

In this course, you’ll review a variety of drugs and their purposes, advantages, risks, and effects on the human body.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to do the following:

Differentiate between antibiotics, antifungals, and antivirals.
Compare drugs that affect the central nervous system as well as the respiratory, gastrointestinal, renal, urinary, and cardiovascular systems.
Identify drugs used as muscle relaxants, nonnarcotic analgesics, hormones, and topicals.
Recognize drugs that are used for chemotherapy.

Lesson Group 4: Community and Hospital Pharmacy Practice

This course begins by comparing and contrasting different types of pharmacy operations throughout the community. This course also describes situations and best practices seen in hospital pharmacy settings. Additionally, you’ll review common responsibilities of pharmacy technicians, including interpreting and processing prescriptions, maintaining electronic records, handling insurance and billing issues, managing inventory, and controlling infection and disease. Finally, you’ll learn about the role that the Health Insurance Privacy and Portability Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration play in medical environments.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to do the following:

Differentiate between types of pharmacy operations.
Explain how pharmacy technicians perform job-related tasks, such as processing prescriptions and third-party payments, managing inventory, and controlling infection and pathogens.
Recognize the pharmacy technician’s role in a hospital pharmacy practice.
Summarize how the Health Insurance Privacy and Portability Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration impact the medical environment.

Lesson Group 5: Laboratory Simulation and Certification Preparation

In this course, you’ll learn how to define basic medical terms and describe the anatomy and physiology of different body systems. You’ll also review the terminology associated with surgical procedures and chronic and infectious diseases. Then, you’ll study key technologies, communication and writing skills, and math concepts commonly used by pharmacy technicians. Finally, you’ll use pharmacy management software to simulate the day-to-day tasks of a pharmacy technician before preparing for your national pharmacy technician certification exams.

By the end of this course, you’ll be able to do the following:

Define terms and abbreviations associated with different body systems.
Identify the characteristics of various surgical treatments and major chronic and infectious diseases.
Identify the technologies, applications, writing and communication skills, and other concepts commonly used by healthcare professionals.
Demonstrate knowledge of the day-to-day tasks of a pharmacy technician using pharmacy management software.

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Pharmacy Technician Program description

The Pharmacy Technician certificate program is designed to provide you with the knowledge of the skills expected of pharmacy technicians. You’ll learn the history, terminology, laws, and standards of the pharmaceutical profession. Additionally, you’ll learn how to classify drugs, calculate conversions, differentiate between types of medications and their purposes, and embark on an externship to gain firsthand experience of a pharmacy practice’s operations.

Program objectives

After completing the Pharmacy Technician program, students will be able to:

Outline the typical responsibilities of a pharmacy technician and describe the personal and professional ethics required for success in this profession.
Describe the roles and responsibilities of the pharmacy technician and the pharmacist, explain the differences between these two roles, and outline the regulations imposed on both by state and federal law.
Demonstrate the standard techniques and procedures required of pharmacy technicians for pharmacy operations, including aseptic operations, medication transcriptions, metric/apothecary conversions, drug dispensation, record keeping, and patient profiling.
List and explain all major classifications of drugs and understand their indications, therapeutic effects, side effects, dosing recommendations, routes of administration, and mechanisms of action.
Interact with pharmacists, customers, and business associates, displaying professional skills, appearance, and ethics in a work-experience setting.

A prescription for success

In the Pharmacy Technician Career Diploma program, you gain valuable career guidance through your externship experience. But that's not all. Ashworth College also helps you develop the confidence you need to reach for your career goals because we integrate job search prep into your studies. With the online tools at the Ashworth College Central Network, you’ll get step-by-step guidance as you create polished, professional resumes and letters. After you graduate, you’ll keep your Ashworth College Central Network account so you can revisit the tools any time you need to make a good impression on a potential employer. Learn more about it at the Career Services page.