pharmacy technician - Ontario College of Pharmacists

PHARMACY TECHNICIANS
regulations are changed. These
legislative changes are in process
and updates will be communicated
when available.
STANDARDS OF PRACTICE IN
DEVELOPMENT
The College is working with
the National Association of
Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities
(NAPRA) on development of
national Standards of Practice for
pharmacy technicians, which will
apply to technicians in Ontario
once approved. More information
and consultation regarding the
development of the Standards will
be provided, once available. The
Professional Competencies for
Canadian Pharmacy Technicians at
Entry to Practice (NAPRA, 2007)
continues to be a good resource to
understand the expected scope of a
technician.
Regulation of pharmacy technicians
allows them to assume the
accountability for the technical
aspects of dispensing, compounding
and selling a drug, including the
independent double check and the
release of all (new, repeat, narcotic)
prescriptions. Since dispensing of
any prescription has both therapeutic
and technical aspects, pharmacy
technicians will need to perform
their new technical functions in
collaboration with the pharmacist,
who remains accountable for
ensuring the therapeutic appropriateness
of every prescription.
For more information of pharmacy
technician regulation, go to www.
ocpinfo.com and click on the
pharmacy technician fast track tab
to learn about the requirements for
registration.
ATTENTION
LAST OPPORTUNITY TO TRANSITION
The first step for anyone who is already working in a pharmacy
assistant/technician role and who did not complete a pharmacy
technician program that held provisional accreditation prior to
graduation is to complete the Pharmacy Examining Board of
Canada (PEBC) Evaluating Exam before January 1st, 2012
(unless they had previously completed the OCP certification
exam).
Registration for the exam on Sat. October 1, 2011 closes
Monday, July 4th, 2011. To register, go to www.pebc.ca
This is the LAST opportunity for you to complete the exam in
order to be eligible to apply for registration in Ontario under the
transition model. Individuals who do not meet this requirement
will not be eligible to complete the Pharmacy Technician Bridging
Program (and will need to demonstrate their education as a
graduate of a CCAPP accredited program).
We strongly encourage you to complete the evaluating exam even
if you are undecided about registration as a pharmacy technician;
it will allow you more time to choose whether to continue with
the requirements to become regulated.
“PHARMACY TECHNICIAN” IS A PROTECTED TITLE
Under the Pharmacy Act, it is an
offence for anyone other than
those who are registered with OCP
as pharmacy technicians to call or
present themselves as pharmacy
technicians. Other non-registered
dispensary personnel must now
use another designation, such as
dispensary or pharmacy assistant.
While we appreciate that a
period of transition is needed, it is
expected that the title used with
the public is changed as required
by law. A discussion in your place
of practice about where the title is
being used, displayed and the steps
for implementing the changes in
the near future should take place.
The College is aware that some
employers may not be ready to
fully utilize a registered pharmacy
technician and may therefore delay
the use of the pharmacy technician
title until they have established the
appropriate role. It is important to
discuss these issues within your
workplace.
If you have any further questions
about the above information, or
regulation of pharmacy technicians
in general please contact: pharmtech@ocpinfo.com
PAGE 34 ~ SPRING 2011 ~ PHARMACY CONNECTION