UW Health Pharmacy Technician Training Program: Learn, Practice, Do

The UW Health Pharmacy Technician Training Program in Madison, Wisconsin, has been designed to provide you with the knowledge and skills to be successful in your career as a pharmacy technician.

Our philosophy is to learn in a classroom environment, practice through simulated labs, and then do these things in real, patient-centered pharmacy practice environments.

What does a pharmacy technician learn?

• Pharmacy Practice: including introduction to pharmacy and patient care, prescription/medication order processing, equipment and facilities, medication preparation, medication distribution
• Law and ethics relating to pharmacy and health care
• Medical terminology
• Pharmaceutical calculations
• Medication safety and quality assurance
• Inventory, purchasing and reimbursement
• Pharmacology: the study of drugs on various systems of the body
• Communication
• Professional development

What does a pharmacy technician practice?

UW Health Pharmacy Technician trainees learn essentially everything they will do as a pharmacy technician:

• Measure, mix, count, label and record amounts of dosages of medications
• Receive written prescriptions or refill requests and verify information is correct
• Maintain proper storage and security conditions for drugs
• Fill bottles with prescribed medications, and type and affix appropriate labels
• Assist customers by answering simple questions, locating items or referring them to the pharmacist for medication information
• Price and file filled prescriptions
• Clean and maintain equipment and work areas
• Establish and maintain patient profiles, including lists of medications, taken by individual patients
• Order, label and stock medications and supplies
• Enter and maintain inventory into the computer system
• Sterile product preparation
• Prepare and process medical insurance claim forms and records
• Mix pharmaceutical preparations
• Operate cash register and accept payment
• Deliver medications and supplies to patients
• Price stock and mark items for sale
• Maintain and merchandise over-the-counter medications, products and supplies
• Answer telephones, responding to questions or requests when appropriate

What does a pharmacy technician do?

UW Health Pharmacy Technician trainees put into practice in a real pharmacy environment everything they have learned and practiced:

• Measure, mix, count, label and record amounts of dosages of medications
• Receive written prescriptions or refill requests and verify information is correct
• Maintain proper storage and security conditions for drugs
• Fill bottles with prescribed medications, and type and affix appropriate labels
• Assist customers by answering simple questions, locating items or referring them to the pharmacist for medication information
• Price and file prescriptions that have been filled
• Clean and maintain equipment and work areas
• Establish and maintain patient profiles, including lists of medications, taken by individual patients
• Order, label and stock medications and supplies
• Enter and maintain inventory into the computer system
• Sterile product preparation
• Prepare and process medical insurance claim forms and records
• Mix pharmaceutical preparations
• Operate cash register and accept payment
• Deliver medications and supplies to patients
• Price stock and mark items for sale
• Maintain and merchandise over-the-counter medications, products and supplies
• Answer telephones, responding to questions or requests when appropriate