Pharmacist Assistant Course: A Great Opportunity to Start Your Career
Pharmacist Assistants play a key role in Canada's growing healthcare industry. For those who are eager to enter the pharmacy industry but don't want to spend years studying for a bachelor's degree in pharmacy, pharmacist assistants are undoubtedly an excellent starting point. So, how can you learn well and successfully start your career as a pharmacist assistant?
In addition to choosing a high-quality training institution, internship opportunities are also crucial. This article will give you a detailed introduction to the responsibilities and employment prospects of Canadian pharmacist assistants, as well as famous pharmacies that can provide internship opportunities after the course, to help you realize your career dream!
Pharmacist Assistant Responsibilities
In modern pharmacies, pharmacist assistants play an important role. They are the pharmacist's right-hand man, responsible for handling various tedious matters, allowing pharmacists to focus on more professional pharmaceutical services. The main responsibilities of a pharmacist assistant include:
Prescription processing: Pharmacist assistants are responsible for receiving customers' prescriptions, noting the accuracy and errors of prescription information, and entering prescription information into the computer system.
Drug dispensing: Under the guidance of the pharmacist, the pharmacist assistant accurately dispenses drugs according to the prescription, and packages and labels them.
Inventory management: The pharmacist assistant is responsible for regularly counting the inventory of drugs, replenishing drugs in a timely manner, and ensuring adequate supply of drugs.
Customer service: The pharmacist assistant is responsible for answering customers' telephone inquiries, answering customers' concerns about drug use, toxicity, etc., and providing high-quality customer service.
Auxiliary work: The pharmacist assistant is also responsible for auxiliary work such as organizing drug shelves and cleaning the pharmacy environment to ensure that the pharmacy is clean and orderly.
Where can I find courses and internship units?
Fanshawe College:
Located in London, Ontario, it offers a two-year college diploma program in pharmacy assistants.
In addition to classroom teaching, the course will also practice in the community pharmacy laboratory of Fanshawe College and complete a 4-month field internship in community and long-term care pharmacies to gain valuable practical experience.
S2 Consulting:
Provides vocational training courses for pharmacy assistants, learning the basics of pharmacy, relevant laws, communication skills, prescriptions, and mathematical skills.
The course is provided by a government-certified teaching institution. Through Better Job and/or OSAP grants, S2 Consulting can provide eligible applicants with high government grants
After the course, you will intern in community pharmacies such as Shoppers’ Drug Mart, Rexall Pharma-Plus, Costco Pharmacy, Walmart Pharmacy and other institutions.
Canadian College of Pharmacy: Provide pharmacist exam tutoring classes.
Canadian Primary Medical Assistant Training Course: The training cycle is short, only 22 weeks, and after passing the exam, you can get the medical and nursing qualification certificate issued by the Alberta provincial government.
How to choose a course?
Is the course setting comprehensive: The course content should cover all the knowledge and skills required for pharmacist assistants, including pharmacology, drug preparation, prescription processing, customer service and pharmacy management.
Is the teaching staff strong: The teaching staff should have rich pharmacy work and teaching experience and be able to provide professional guidance to students.
Is there an internship opportunity: Internship is an important way to practice what you have learned and can help students better adapt to future work.
Is it certified: The course should be certified by authoritative organizations such as the Canadian Pharmacy Program Accreditation Council to ensure the quality of teaching and the employment competitiveness of graduates.
Tuition and scholarships: Understand the tuition standards of the course and ask if there are any funding methods such as scholarships or loans.
Future employment prospects
With the aging of the Canadian population and the growing demand for health care, the employment prospects of pharmacist assistants are very optimistic.
Strong market demand: The demand for pharmacists and pharmacist assistants in Canada continues to grow, especially in community pharmacies and long-term care facilities.
Comfortable working environment: Pharmacist assistants usually work in pharmacies or medical institutions with comfortable environments and relatively less work pressure.
Good salary: According to Indeed data, the average hourly wage of a pharmacist assistant in Canada can reach CAD$27.09, and even higher in some areas.
Career development space: Through continuous learning and accumulation of experience, a pharmacist assistant can be promoted to a senior pharmacist assistant or a pharmacy supervisor, and can even choose to continue his studies and become a pharmacist.
Success story: From pharmacist assistant to pharmacist, realizing career dreams
Xiao Li is a new immigrant who chose the career of pharmacist assistant after coming to Canada. By studying at Fanshawe College, Xiao Li mastered solid pharmacy knowledge and skills and got an internship opportunity at Shoppers Drug Mart. After graduation, he successfully entered a community pharmacy. With diligence and hard work, he quickly mastered the various skills of pharmacy operations and was recognized by colleagues and customers.
A few years later, Xiao Li decided to continue his studies and pursue an undergraduate degree in pharmacy. With the experience and knowledge accumulated in the position of pharmacist assistant, he was successfully admitted to his ideal university. Today, Xiao Li has become a qualified pharmacist, shining in the position he loves.
Conclusion
The Canadian Pharmacist Assistant Course is a great opportunity for you to start your career. Choose a high-quality training institution that provides internship opportunities, master professional knowledge and skills, and you will have your own sky in the field of healthcare in Canada! Whether you choose to become an excellent pharmacist assistant or use it as a springboard to continue your studies to become a pharmacist, you will realize your career dream while contributing to the health of the community!