Expanding the Role of Technicians: An Expert Panel

As the role of the pharmacist continues to evolve, so should the role of the pharmacy technician. In this round-robin discussion, hear firsthand from pharmacy technicians who perform tasks other than the technical activities of preparing a prescription to be dispensed. Topics will include community health workers, billing support, management and leadership, and much more – everything is on the table.

Pharmacist and Pharmacy Technician Learning Objectives:

1. Identify five pharmacy tasks outside of traditional prescription dispensing that are ideally suited for pharmacy technicians.
2. List key metrics to measure pharmacy growth.
3. Assess the value of creating pharmacy technician positions dedicated to medical billing.

Meredith Ayers, CPhT, Bremo Pharmacy. As a pharmacy technician of several years, Meredith has been in roles from behind the bench to medical billing specialist. In her current role at Bremo Pharmacy, she focuses on medical billing from vaccines to durable medical equipment as well as coordination of a medication management certification course taught by pharmacy staff.

 Richard Logan, PharmD, owner, SEMORx Pharmacies. Several pharmacy technicians at Richard’s pharmacy have been trained as community health workers, which has had a positive benefit on patient care and the pharmacy’s bottom line.  Richard is a strong proponent of pharmacy technicians as community health workers and has seen firsthand the positive impact that they have on the pharmacy.

Robert Ulrich, CPhT, chief information officer, Dilworth Drug & Wellness Center. Robert is a pharmacy technician at Dilworth Drug and an active member of their leadership team, spearheading data analysis, and developing ideas for new growth. Robert also has a role as back-office manager handling Medicare enrollment, payroll, and human resources. In developing new ideas for growth, Robert has had a significant role in growing Dilworth Drug’s wellness practice and decreasing reliance on third-party reimbursements.

ACPE UAN: 0207-0000-21-603-L04-P/T | 1 contact hour (0.1 CEU) | Activity Type: Knowledge-Based