Online Pharmacy Technician Curriculum and Classes

Students learn about the role of the pharmacy technician in the medical field, distinguishing between the pharmacist’s and pharmacy technician’s scope of practice. Then, students begin the important work of developing their medical vocabulary. They practice using medical root words, prefixes and suffixes, as well as common symbols and abbreviations used in the pharmacy. Students build on their communication skills and learn about the laws and regulations that govern the pharmacy practice, and the benefits of a professional code of ethics to guide them in making good decisions. They access and use information sources to find new drugs and to assist patients with medication advice. Next, students discover the pharmacy technician’s duties in various settings. Students wrap up by exploring some common disease processes.

This pack begins with a study of vitamins, minerals, food additives and nutritional care. Students learn about the many types of drug dosage forms, how drugs react in the body and how drugs interact with other drugs. Students read and interpret pharmacy terminology while learning about the two most important documents they will work with—the prescription and the medical order. Students’ drug vocabulary increases as they explore the challenges of prescribing drugs to the very old and the very young. Students then discover the procedures to prevent medication errors and what to do when a negative reaction or poisoning occurs. Students walk behind the scenes to discover how pharmacies maintain drug inventory and dispensation control, including DEA requirements for controlled substances. Finally, students discover the various antimicrobial agents that affect the human body.

Here, students study vaccines and analgesic agents. They explore the types of drug agents used to battle disease—neurologic, anesthetic, respiratory and cardiovascular agents. After a refresher course in basic mathematics and solving formulas using variables, students gain insight into the fundamentals of financial transactions, including the method behind pharmaceutical pricing. Students wrap up by focusing on musculoskeletal agents.

Continuing their in-depth study of drug agents, students explore gastrointestinal, urinary, endocrine and antineoplastic agents. Before moving on, students encounter the second mathematics lesson, which teaches them how to determine the ratios, proportions and equivalencies they will use to calculate drug dosages. Students then learn the techniques to compound drugs in both a sterile and nonsterile environment. Parenteral and intravenous admixtures are explored. Students complete the course with an opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills they’ve learned in their final quiz.