With an aging population leading to increased demand for prescription medications and new medications for more diseases becoming available, the demand on pharmacies continues to grow.
Yet pharmacies in the Yakima Valley and across the nation are having difficulty finding enough pharmacy technicians 鈥� health care workers who provide an essential role in helping pharmacists prepare medications and in helping patients understand how to properly use those medications.
The shortage of pharmacy technicians in the Yakima Valley makes it harder to serve and advocate for patients and to dispense and bill medications in a timely manner says Stephanie O鈥橞rine, an instructor in YVC鈥檚 Pharmacy Technician program.
鈥淲ith our population of older people growing, pharmacies are facing increasing demands,鈥� O鈥橞rine said. 鈥淎nd the challenge here is particularly acute given the diversity of our community and the need for pharmacy technicians who are prepared to serve our Spanish-speaking population.鈥�
O鈥橞rine noted that pharmacy technicians play an essential role in a high-quality health care system and that the career also offers people an opportunity to enter a well-paid and stable profession.
The media annual wage for pharmacy technicians in Washington state is as of May 2020 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment of pharmacy technicians also is projected to grow 4% from 2019 to 2029 as increased demand for prescription medications leads to more demand for pharmaceutical services.
Even as the need for pharmacy technicians is on the rise, filling the available openings is a challenge for pharmacists like Todd Kean of Village Pharmacy Services in Yakima, which regularly hires graduates of YVC鈥檚 program.
鈥淭here is a consistent need for new pharmacy technicians that are capable and eager to learn,鈥� Kean said. 鈥淭he YVC Pharmacy Technician program is one of the first places we contact in search of quality applicants.鈥�
YVC offers a pharmacy technician certificate course of study that can be completed in one year of study or an associate of applied science degree that can be completed in two years. The program combines convenient online instruction, laboratory simulations and supervised experiential practice. A new laboratory in YVC鈥檚 West Campus gives students an opportunity to work with modern equipment in an innovative space that reflects real life outpatient and inpatient pharmacy practice.
Applications for YVC鈥檚 Pharmacy Technician program are accepted through August 1 for individuals to start the program in the Fall Quarter. For more information about the program email alliedhealth@yvcc.edu, call 509.574.4913鈥嬧�� or visit the Pharmacy Technician program website.