Program Overview:
This program prepares students to work in retail, closed-door, compounding, and institutional pharmacies under the direction of a pharmacist. Students are trained to provide counter assistance, to keep patient and related health record information, and to bill insurance companies. Students learn how to fill prescriptions, which includes creating the label for the bottle, filling the prescription, making capsules using non-sterile compounding procedures, and making IV’s using aseptic techniques. At the conclusion of the course, students are qualified to take the National Pharmacy Technician Exam through the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) or National Healthcareer Association (ExCPT). Students can also become licensed through the Utah Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing (must be 18 years of age). Program includes an externship at a local retail, hospital, or compounding pharmacy.
Course Descriptions:
For Concurrent Enrollment Classes see Appendix.
MA 1100 Medical Terminology: Course format is lecture supplemented with videos and discussion covering more than 350 medical word roots, suffixes, and prefixes. Emphasis is placed on pronunciation, spelling, and proper usage of medical terms. Medical abbreviations are also introduced.
Pharmacy Technician: This year-long course provides training for students to prepare to take the national certification exam. Students will learn patient data collection and recording, medication processing, medication order preparation, and inventory management. Emphasis will be placed on pharmacy laws and regulations, as well as proper work-place safety and sanitization.
Health Science Capstone: This is a semester course designed to prepare students for a health science career. Students will participate in work-based learning experiences designed to introduce and research different health science careers.
Career Possibilities:
- Pharmacy Technician – retail or clinical
- Pharmacist – retail or clinical
Additional Details:
High School Credit: CTE or elective credit: up to 3 credits
