Pharmacist-Pharmacy Technician Intraprofessional Collaboration and Workplace Integration: Implications for Educators

Globally, concerns have been expressed regarding the impact of regulation of pharmacy technicians. After more than a decade of experience with technician regulation in Ontario, Canada, uptake of the full scope of practice for technicians has been sporadic at best. The objective of this study was to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Pharmacy 2020-06, Vol.8 (2), p.95
Main Authors: Jetha, Maryam, Walji, Ali, Gregory, Paul, Abdulla, Dalya, Austin, Zubin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Clinics
Collaboration
community pharmacy practice
continuing professional development
Curricula
Drug stores
Education
Interviews
Inventory control
Pharmacists
pharmacy technician
pharmacy technician education
Qualitative research
Regulation
Research methodology
Researchers
Social networks
Teachers
Workforce
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Summary:Globally, concerns have been expressed regarding the impact of regulation of pharmacy technicians. After more than a decade of experience with technician regulation in Ontario, Canada, uptake of the full scope of practice for technicians has been sporadic at best. The objective of this study was to examine barriers and facilitators to intraprofessional collaboration between pharmacists and pharmacy technicians for the purpose of identifying possible curricular or educational interventions to enhance workplace integration. A qualitative, interview-based study of 24 pharmacists, technicians, educators, pharmacy managers, and owners was undertaken using a semi-structured interview guide. Key findings of this research include: i) Confirmation of suboptimal utilization of regulated technicians in practice; ii) identification of crucial knowledge and skills gaps for both pharmacists and technicians; and iii) proposals for undergraduate education and training, and continuing professional development learning opportunities to address these gaps. In order to achieve the promise and potential of regulation of pharmacy technicians, system-wide change management-beginning with education-will be required and will benefit from multiple stakeholder engagement and involvement.
ISSN:2226-4787
2226-4787
DOI:10.3390/pharmacy8020095