Health Programs » Pharmacy Assistant Diploma, Mississauga

The Role of the Pharmacy Assistant

Assisting the Pharmacist in:

• Preparation of Prescriptions: Receiving a written prescription or request for prescription refill from the patient or representative.
• Ensuring completeness of information on prescription.
• Preparation of prescription labels.
• Retrieving, counting, pouring, weighing, measuring and mixing medications
• Reconstituting medications.
• Selecting type of prescription container.
• Affixing prescription and auxiliary labels to prescription containers.
• Pricing prescriptions.
• Filling prescriptions.
• Establishing and maintaining patient profiles repackaging and labelling of medications.
• Maintaining packaging and dispensing equipment.
• Replenishing medications for nursing units, night cupboards, emergency boxes and cardiac arrest kits.
• Preparing specialty products.

Clerical Activities:

• Preparing and reconciling third party billings.
• Preparing receipts, invoices, letters and memos and general filing.
• Generating long-term care data (i.e. medication administration record, medication review)
• Maintaining drug information files.
• Billing appropriate department for medication.
• Receiving and sending electronic communication.

Communication Skills:

• Communicating with customers, physicians and suppliers.
• Questions relating to prescriptions, drug information, poison information or any health matter must be referred to the pharmacist.

Inventory Management:

• Monitoring stock levels to ensure sufficient quantities for optimal operation.
• Preparing and placing orders from specified sources.
• Receiving and checking supplies purchased.
• Issuing supplies from the storeroom.
• Maintaining storage facilities.
• Maintaining inventory records, including those for narcotics and controlled drugs.
• Rotating stock and monitoring expiry dates.
• Identifying expired products for disposal, destruction or return to manufacturer.
• Pre-packaging of medications (including unit dose packaging)
• Delivery of medications (including unit dose packaging)
• Delivery of medications to institutional wards.
• Restocking of institutional wards with narcotics and controlled drugs.

The Responsibilities of a Pharmacy Assistant Are Varied and May Include:

• Assisting the pharmacist in the day to day operation of the pharmacy.
• Inputting prescriptions into the computer system.
• Ordering and maintaining inventory.
• Dealing with clients on a one to one basis.

Graduates of This Program Will Learn:

• Therapeutic classes of medications.
• Compounding of medication orders.
• Sterile preparations.
• How to deal with the public.
• Computer skills.
• How to deal with insurance companies and ODP.
• Clinical and brand name medications.

The Modules of Study Include:

• Role of the technician/assistant.
• Compounding
• Jurisprudence
• Communication skills
• Pharmacology
• Community and hospital systems and procedures
• Long term care facilities
• Computer systems and applications
• Sterile products
• Practical field experience

Career Opportunities:

The demand for Pharmacy Assistants and the number of diverse job opportunities continues to grow, largely due to our aging population.

Certified Pharmacy Assistant is a dynamic and exciting career where opportunities are growing in communities and pharmacy environments across Canada.

Admissions Requirements:

To be accepted an applicant must successfully complete an entrance evaluation and a personal interview as well as the following:

• Grade 12 or equivalent
• Mature student status
• Hepatitis B Vaccination

Program Length

The program is taught in a total of 36 weeks with 25 hours in class study per week. This will be followed by an externship in a workplace setting of 4 weeks.

Funding Options

The Pharmacy Assistant program is eligible for up to five different funding options, including OSAP (to those who qualify), EI, Second Career Payment Plans and even loans facilitated by us.

Click here to request free information