Diploma in Pharmacy Technician
Toronto, Canada
DURATION
2 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline
EARLIEST START DATE
Request earliest startdate
TUITION FEES
CAD 2,721 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* tuition 2 semesters Canadian students; CAD 15,693 - tuition 2 semesters International students
Introduction
- Program Code: 5850
- School: School of Community and Health Studies
- Credential: Ontario College Diploma
- Program Type: Post-secondary program
- Program Length: 2 years/ 4 semesters
- Location: Morningside Campus
Centennial College's Pharmacy Technician program offers a dynamic curriculum based on the National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities (NAPRA) Professional Competencies for Canadian Pharmacy Technicians at Entry to Practice.
The learner-centred environment fostered in this pharmacy diploma program will allow you to gain the necessary skills based on the nine NAPRA competencies, which include:
- Ethical, Legal and Professional Responsibilities
- Patient Care
- Product Distribution
- Practice Setting
- Health Promotion
- Knowledge and Research Application
- Communication and Education
- Intra and Inter-Professional Collaboration
- Quality and Safety
To practice as a pharmacy technician in Ontario, you will be required to complete the Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada qualifying exams, and the Ontario College of Pharmacists (OCP) jurisprudence exam in order to register with the Ontario College of Pharmacists according to its licensing requirements.
Profession Overview
“Pharmacy technicians also play a vital role in pharmacy care. While their scope of practice may vary slightly by jurisdiction, their core role is to provide the technical aspects of pharmacy services to support optimal pharmacy care for patients. Examples of the types of activities performed by pharmacy technicians include verifying the technical aspects of new and refill prescriptions, compounding drug preparations, gathering information, teaching patients how to use medical devices, completing documentation, completing medication histories, and performing other tasks to support pharmacists, such as preparing and/or administering injections”.
Admissions
Curriculum
Semester 1
- COMM-160/161 College Communication 1
- PHAR-103 Anatomy & Physiology
- PHAR-113 Community Pharmacy Computers
- PHAR-115 Pharmaceutical Calculations
- PHAR-118 Community Practice Theory
- PHAR-130 Professional Practice and Drug Programs
- PHAR-131 Community Pharmacy Dispensing Practice 1
Semester 2
- GNED General Education Elective
- GNED-500 Global Citizenship: From Social Analysis to Social Action
- PHAR-123 Home Health Care and Non-Prescription Products
- PHAR-124 Compounding
- PHAR-129 Introduction to Pharmacology
- PHAR-132 Community Pharmacy Dispensing Practice II
- PHAR-220 Pharmaceutical Calculations II
Semester 3
- COMM-170/171 College Communication 2
- GNED General Education Elective
- PHAR-126 Community Pharmacy Placement 1
- PHAR-210 Aseptic Technique Principles I
- PHAR-214 Institution Dispensing 1
- PHAR-215 Institution Communications and Operations
- PHAR-219 Advanced Pharmacology
Semester 4
- PHAR-221 Institution Dispensing II
- PHAR-222 Aseptic Technique Principles II
- PHAR-225 Comprehensive Review & Exam
- PHAR-226 Integrated Practice and Career Development
- PHAR-227 Pharmacy Management
- PHAR-230 Final Pharmacy Placement
Program Outcome
Program Highlights
You will enjoy a mix of classroom and hands-on practical laboratory experiences at Centennial's Morningside Campus, which features three state-of-the-art labs that include community dispensing, institution/long-term care and sterile and non-sterile compounding.
This Pharmacy Technician program will help you to gain knowledge of pharmacology as well as aseptic technique, pharmaceutical calculations, compounding, inventory control, and community and institution dispensing skills.
You will have the opportunity for three work experience placements. The program's field placement partners help it to ensure CCAPP standards and pharmacy competencies are met by providing opportunities through which you'll attain a minimum of 160 hours in each hospital/institutional and community pharmacy setting.
Vocational Learning Outcomes
Program Vocational Learning Outcomes from the Ministry of Colleges and Universities describe what graduates of the program have demonstrated they can do with the knowledge and skills they have achieved during their studies. The outcomes are closely tied to the needs of the workplace. Through assessment (e.g., assignments and tests), students verify their ability to reliably perform these outcomes before graduating.
- Practice safely within a legal, ethical and professional framework in practice settings.
- Process prescriptions accurately in compliance with pertinent legislation and established standards, policies and procedures in practice settings.
- Prepare pharmaceutical products for dispensing in compliance with pertinent legislation and established standards, policies and procedures in practice settings.
- Release pharmaceutical products in compliance with pertinent legislation and established standards, policies and procedures in practice settings.
- Collaborate with the pharmacist and other health care providers to optimize the patient’s health and well-being within the scope of practice of the pharmacy technician.
- Promote quality assurance by performing effective and efficient administrative functions in practice settings.
- Optimize medication therapy management and product distribution using current technologies in practice settings.
- Develop and implement effective strategies for ongoing personal and professional development that support currency, competence, ethics and values in the pharmacy sector.
Career Opportunities
Career Outlook
- Community Pharmacy Technician
- Hospital Pharmacy Technician
- Institutional Pharmacy Technician
- Long Term Care Pharmacy Technician
- Sterile Pharmacy Technician
- Medication Reimbursement Specialists
- Pharmacy Software Technician
- BPMH Pharmacy Technician
- Medication Reconciliation Pharmacy Technician
Education Pathways
Successful graduates of this Pharmacy Technician Diploma program have the opportunity to apply their credits toward further study at the degree level. Please note that each partner pathway has a specific minimum grade requirement in order to qualify for transfer credits, which are assessed by the receiving partner institution.
Areas of Employment
- Hospital pharmacies
- Community pharmacies
- Long-term care (LTC) pharmacies
- Specialty compounding pharmacies
- Insurance companies
- Software companies
- Pharmaceutical companies
- Research
- Academia