Rachel Barenie, PharmD, JD, MPH
Assistant Director of Continuing Professional Development
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Colleges of pharmacy are optimally positioned to train the entire pharmacy team, including pharmacists and pharmacy support personnel. This opportunity is even more pronounced with the acceleration of the scope of practice for pharmacy technicians coupled with the tremendous need in pharmacy practice for individuals to fill those roles.
Educational Strategy:
Our Office of Continuing Professional Development launched a best-in-class pharmacy technician training program in October 2020 to ensure affordable and accessible training was available to every individual interested in a career as a pharmacy technician.
Patient-Level Outcome(s) Measured:
We aimed to evaluate the success of the first eight cohorts of our training program. Primary outcomes included total registrants since program inception, completion rate, timeliness of completion (< /=12 weeks, >12 weeks but < /=less than 24 weeks, >24 weeks, or no completion), number of learners applying for the national certification exam, and passage of national certification exam. The data was evaluated from 2020 through 2022.
To-date, we have had 84 learners register for the program. Most learners who register for the program complete the program (58%; n=39). This is notable since the program is completely online and designed to be self-paced. Of those that have completed the program, most have taken the national certification exam (56%; n=22). Of those that took the national certification exam, most have successfully passed the exam (82%; n=18).
Most learners who register and complete the program take and pass the national certification exam. Additional efforts are needed to increase registrations and incentivize program completion.