Pharmacy assistant is considered a hands-on role in the healthcare Department. The training period for this career is less than a year. The pharmacy assistant will have to work with a licensed pharmacist and address the needs of patients. Their job description includes mixed duties of customer service, technical, and clerical tasks to have the pharmacy run smoothly. A pharmacy assistant is a person that welcomes the customers when they come over to the counter after getting a prescription from a doctor for medication. Following are some roles the pharmacy assistant is required to fulfil if needed.
Pharmacy Assistant Duties and Responsibilities – Customer Service:
Serving the customer is an essential job for any pharmacy assistant because you need high communication skills. The pharmacy assistant is responsible for greeting the patients to collect their relevant information for their prescription form. It could be the name, date of birth, addresses, and insurance coverage, et cetera. It is important to keep the frustration of patients at a low level by informing them in advance about the expected time of wait for their prescription to be ready.
The pharmacy assistant role also needs to answer the queries by attending telephone calls, replying to emails. They need to provide information about medicines and pharmacy products and help the customers find what they are looking for. As a pharmacy assistant, one can learn customer service and communication skills and better understand different nonmedical prescriptions and medical prescriptions.
Note: However, as a pharmacy assistant, one cannot answer any question about the recommended medicine for its purpose. In that case, the customer should be referred to a pharmacist.
Pharmacy Assistant Duties and Responsibilities – Making Prescriptions:
The most important part of pharmacy assistants is to prepare prescriptions according to the recommendation of doctors. According to the pharmacist’s instructions, they need to calculate to suggest and reconstitute, make compound medicines. They’re also required to make ingredients for powders, appointments, capsules, and creams etc. It is also important to label the prescription and keep a record of dosage information. In case you’re working at a hospital pharmacy. The pharmacy assistant needs to prepare nutritional solutions and IVs. However, it is important to remember that pharmacy assistants don’t have any license, and any College of Pharmacy cannot regulate them.
Pharmacy Assistant Duties and Responsibilities – Payments processing and Insurance Claims:
Pharmacy assistants also work on cash registers. After completing a prescription, they need to figure out its cost and how much will be covered by third parties and insurance agencies. This process is called adjudication. There is a special software designed to compare the cost of the medicine with the insurance companies’ benefits. This software can provide you results within the second to inform the customer about how much of the expense will be covered by the insurance company and what they need to pay? Getting cash from customers is also included in the duty of a pharmacy assistant.
Pharmacy Assistant Duties and Responsibilities – Inventory Management:
Certainly very difficult and hard work. The pharmacy assistant should be able to keep shelves of pharmacists stocked with all current products. It is important to check that merchandise, which is known as prescription and ordering new supplies and rotating stock when it is essential. It also involves getting rid of expired medicine or products from the shelves. The expired medications should be gathered and disposed of by following proper procedures. Moreover, if there is any call-off from a company or government. The product should immediately be removed from the shelves and isolated until full details are revealed on how to handle it further.
Pharmacy Assistant Duties and Responsibilities – Administrative Support:
There are several clerical tasks ready for a pharmacy assistant. They are also responsible for preparing cash memos, letters heads, receipts, and invoices. They can also be asked to organize the incoming faxes, they must generate necessary reports and file the complete documentation regarding the prescription.
Pharmacy Assistant Program at Bay River College:
Our college is allowing you to join our training program for pharmacy assistants. We have designed a comprehensive and short and express diploma course for students; it will take 34 weeks with 200 hours of Practicum. You have any queries; our admission advisors are there to help you with all your questions. They are well-qualified counsellors and can also guide you through different details, including application, fee structures, financial aid, etc.
