Together with PTCB’s Board of Governors and staff, I want to thank and commend the more than 288,000 PTCB Certified Pharmacy Technicians (CPhTs) for their energy and dedication as they face an unprecedented event. Pharmacy technicians are on the front lines in the national effort to battle the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Many are bearing a heavier load and carrying increased responsibilities to support essential care services and serve patients during this time. 

We are committed to serving CPhTs, as well as employers, educators, and the pharmacy community during this challenging period so they can continue to advance patient care. Below are some of the actions we are taking.

·        Pearson VUE has suspended test delivery at its company-owned US and Canada-based testing centers until at least April 16 or whenever conditions are safe to reopen. Technicians who have scheduled test appointments will be able to reschedule their exam appointments in the future through Pearson VUE.

·        For those who are preparing to become CPhTs, we have extended our practice test sale for the Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam (PTCE) through May 31.

For recertification candidates:

·        We have extended recertification deadlines for 60 days for CPhTs and Certified Compounded Sterile Preparation Technicians (CSPTs) who have March 31, April 30, and May 31 expiration dates to allow them extra time for completing CE and submitting applications.

·        We just launched a listing of free continuing education programs so pharmacy technicians have easier access to the resources they need.

We continue to work to keep our mission to advance medication safety and patient care as our top priority.

Sincerely,
Bill Schimmel

Applicants must complete education and training or work experience to be eligible in 2020

WASHINGTON, DC -- With the start of the new year, the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board^® (PTCB^®), the nation’s leading certifying organization for pharmacy technicians, has implemented new eligibility requirements and an updated Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam^® (PTCE^®) for its Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) Program. The 2020 changes are based on data generated by PTCB’s most recent pharmacy Job Task Analysis, reflecting input from more than 40,000 technicians across practice settings, and guidance from the pharmacy community, including employers, educators, and organizations.

“PTCB is focused solely on advancing medication safety, and we rely on data and input from pharmacy professionals to guide the direction of our program updates,” said PTCB Executive Director and CEO William Schimmel. “With the 2020 changes, PTCB reaffirms our commitment to ensuring that PTCB’s CPhT Program advances patient care. Pharmacists can trust that technicians who earn PTCB credentials have demonstrated current knowledge that is critical to performing their jobs safely in today’s pharmacy workplace.”

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Study Shows Certified Pharmacy Technicians are More Committed to a Pharmacy Career Than Noncertified
by Laura Humphrey | Aug 07, 2019

More likely to seek expanded responsibilities

WASHINGTON, DC -- New research shows nationally certified pharmacy technicians are more committed to a pharmacy career and have a greater desire to take on new and expanded responsibilities than noncertified. The study*, “Assessing Pharmacy Technician Certification,” published in the June 2019 Journal of the American Pharmacists Association (JAPhA), compared the viewpoints of certified and noncertified technicians, and explored the perceived value of certification in the areas of medication safety, skills and abilities, experience, career engagement and satisfaction, and productivity.

Based on the findings, certified technicians have a stronger organizational commitment and view themselves as making fewer medication errors. They are more likely than noncertified to complete a pharmacy technician training program at a community college or vocational school, work 40 hours or more per week, and have an expectation for higher wages, according to the study.

The majority of respondents, both certified and noncertified, said they have confidence in performing the final check on another technician’s preparation of a new or refilled medication, a process known as Technician Product Verification (TPV) or tech-check-tech. Most in both categories reported a sense of pride in their work.

The Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) funded the research through a grant, and played no role in the analysis, interpretation, or publishing of the results. “PTCB places the safety of patients above all, so we study technician credentialing and our own programs to ensure they advance medication safety by certifying qualified technicians,” said PTCB Executive Director and CEO William Schimmel. “This research provides new data that identifies specific attributes of certified technicians, including higher career engagement and more desire for job advancement.

“As the role of the pharmacist continues to transform to more patient-focused direct care, there is an increasing call for technicians to fill advanced roles and responsibilities. This study tells us that certified technicians are more likely to have a desire for such duties and roles,” said Schimmel. “We use data like this to help inform our programs and demonstrate their value to the pharmacy community and the public.”

In March, PTCB announced it is expanding its credentialing programs, adding five assessment-based certificate programs for advanced roles, and an Advanced Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT-Adv) credential, during the next 2 years. The five certificate programs will include: Technician Product Verification (TPV); Medication History; Billing and Reimbursement; Controlled Substance Diversion Prevention; and Hazardous Drug Management. The TPV and Medication History programs will be the first to be offered later this year. 

A 2016 PTCB-sponsored public perception survey revealed that 85% of the public believes it is very important for pharmacy technicians to be certified: 94% say their trust in pharmacy technicians’ work would increase with standardized certification and training; 76% say they would seek out a different pharmacy if their current pharmacy’s technicians were not certified. Respondents said certification’s major benefit is its impact on accuracy and professional knowledge.

Of the 45 states that regulate pharmacy technicians, 19 require national certification in their regulations. There are more than 288,000 active PTCB-Certified pharmacy technicians (CPhTs) in the US.

METHODOLOGY
The research method was a cross-sectional survey of pharmacy technicians from six states representing four US regions. Technician mailing lists were purchased from Boards of Pharmacy, and randomly selected technicians were sent survey invitations. Six hundred seventy-six technicians (547 certified, 103 noncertified, and 26 previously certified) responded, representing a range of pharmacy practice settings.

*”Assessing Pharmacy Technician Certification: A National Survey Comparing Certified And Noncertified Pharmacy Technicians”: James S. Wheeler, Chelsea P. Renfro, Junling Wang, Yanru Qiao, Kenneth C. Hohmeier; JAPhA, June 2019.

Thanks to the hard work of Sara Fern, CPhT, CSHP's Pharmacy Technician Task Force co-chair, we have been awarded a grant to support projects that promote medication safety and advance the role of pharmacy technicians. The grants were made through PTCB’s new Partnership Funds Program launched in March to support selected projects of the 72 state pharmacy associations that participate in PTCB’s State Associate Program.

The grant will fund activities in compounded sterile preparation, technician product verification (TPV), and best practices in medication safety. CSHP's Compounded Sterile Preparation Technician (CSPT) workshop will be available to all CT pharmacy technicians.