As pharmacists continue to expand their roles into more patient-centric services, the roles of technicians must evolve along with those of pharmacist. Changes in job descriptions and workflow designs will free up time for pharmacists, but only if pharmacists are effective in delegating. Pharmacy technicians are involved in medication reconciliation in transitions of care, patient safety and medication access, and assisting with medication therapy management. They are increasingly taking part in managerial tasks and assisting pharmacists in drug therapy monitoring clinics as part of pharmacy’s strong commitment toward ensuring patient adherence with their medications. Medication synchronization is seen as a viable mechanism to bolster patient adherence and thus reduce emergency department visits and reduce patient hospitalizations.

Research conducted by Renfro et al explored the role of pharmacy technicians in implementing an appointment-based model (ABM) medication synchronization program.¹ Research findings from the study concluded that there were multiple challenges associated with successful implementation of an ABM medication synchronization program in community pharmacies. One particular challenge brought to light from pharmacy technicians is the amount of time required for pharmacy technicians to have more hands-on experience and proper training to better apply the ABM program to reduce the likelihood of erroneous fills and wasted time during the patient enrollment process. Pharmacy technicians stated their struggles in balancing enough time to build confidence in implementing the ABM program with other more “traditional” duties that still take a large portion of their daily work lives. Mishandling new workflow patterns can result in lack of buy-in by technicians and other staff.  

Effective management can provide support and build self-efficacy for pharmacy technicians. This will likely involve soliciting their input during all phases of the process and effectively delegating, which means inspiring confidence in them but also knowing their limits in regard to the time it takes to take part in a program like ABM patient visits for medication synchronization.  A supportive pharmacist supervisor might draw some insight from Leader Member Exchange (LMX) theory, which accentuates the importance of relationships in delegation, accounting for role-taking, role-making, and routinization. Appropriate workforce budgeting through proper pharmacy manager delegation should be the main focus in successfully implementing an ABM program.

Additional information about Pharmacy Technicians and Implementation of Value-Added Services can be found in Pharmacy Management: Essentials for All Practice Settings, 5e.

¹Renfro C, Coulter D, Ly L, Fisher C, Cardosi L, Wasson M, Hohmeier KC. Exploring pharmacy technician roles in the implementation of an appointment-based medication synchronization Program. Pharmacy. 2020; 8(1):28.

Written by:

Joanne Canedo, PharmD Candidate, Touro University California College of Pharmacy

Shane P. Desselle, RPh, PhD, FAPhA, Professor of Social/behavioral pharmacy at Touro University California College of Pharmacy