Cultivating talent from within: Exploring pharmacy technician interest in pursuing a PharmD

IF 2.5 4区医学 Q3 PHARMACOLOGY & PHARMACY

Journal of the American Pharmacists Association Pub Date : 2025-08-28 DOI:10.1016/j.japh.2025.102913

Valerie Simmons, Edward A. Witt, Ranti Akiyode, S. Suresh Madhavan, Glen Schumock, Michelle Clark, Heather Lawrence

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background

The pharmacy profession continues to face a shortage of pharmacists, exacerbated by declining pharmacy school graduates, increasing prescription volume, and increased demand for other pharmacy services. The pharmacy technician population works side by side pharmacists every day and represent potential candidates for future pharmacists.

Objectives

To assess community pharmacy technicians' interest in pursuing a PharmD degree and to identify the barriers preventing them from completing their prepharmacy requirements.

Methods

A 20-question survey was sent to 6020 locations in a large, national community pharmacy. Pharmacy technicians with over 1 year of experience were invited to voluntarily complete the survey. The survey and study procedures were reviewed and approved by Advarra IRB (#Pro00055252) and descriptive statistics were calculated to summarize and evaluate the results.

Results

A total of 2476 pharmacy technicians participated in the survey with a demographic profile reflecting the chain and national averages. A large majority of technicians (75%) expressed interest in pursuing a PharmD degree, much higher than the 1% of the technician workforce who currently advance into pharmacy school. For those interested, the key barriers to pursuing their prepharmacy requirements were identified as the financial cost of tuition and fees (86%) and balancing work, family, and school (69%). The factors they identified as most desirable to help them overcome the barriers were a program fully funded by the employer (88%) and access to an online program with flexibility to pursue courses at their own pace (79%).

Conclusion

The findings indicate a substantial interest among pharmacy technicians in pursuing a career as a pharmacist. In exploring strategies to enhance and establish new pathways into pharmacy school, it is essential to identify approaches that reduce the financial burden associated with prerequisite coursework. Additionally, providing flexible and convenient class schedules is critical to supporting this working adult population.

查看原文本刊更多论文

从内部培养人才：探索药学技术人员对攻读药学博士学位的兴趣。

背景：药学专业继续面临药剂师短缺的问题，这一问题因药学学校毕业生人数下降、处方量增加以及对其他药学服务需求增加而加剧。药学技术人员每天与药剂师并肩工作，并代表未来药剂师的潜在候选人。目的：评估社区药学技术人员对攻读药学博士学位的兴趣，并确定阻碍他们完成药房前要求的障碍。方法：向全国大型社区药房的6020个地点发送了一份包含20个问题的调查。有一年以上工作经验的药学技术人员被邀请自愿完成调查。调查和研究程序由Advarra IRB （#Pro00055252）审查和批准，并计算描述性统计以总结和评估结果。结果：共有2476名药学技术人员参与了调查，其人口统计资料反映了连锁店和全国平均水平。绝大多数技术人员（75%）表示有兴趣攻读药学博士学位，远远高于目前进入药学学校的1%的技术人员队伍。对于那些感兴趣的人来说，实现药房前要求的主要障碍被确定为学费和杂费的财务成本（86%）和平衡工作、家庭和学校（69%）。他们认为最能帮助他们克服障碍的因素是由雇主全额资助的课程（88%）和可以按照自己的节奏灵活学习的在线课程（79%）。结论：研究结果表明，药学技术人员在追求职业生涯作为一个药剂师实质性的兴趣。在探索加强和建立进入药学院的新途径的策略时，必须确定减少与先决课程相关的经济负担的方法。此外，提供灵活方便的课程安排对于支持这些工作的成年人口至关重要。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of the American Pharmacists Association 医学-药学

CiteScore

3.30

自引率

14.30%

发文量

336

审稿时长

46 days

期刊介绍： The Journal of the American Pharmacists Association is the official peer-reviewed journal of the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), providing information on pharmaceutical care, drug therapy, diseases and other health issues, trends in pharmacy practice and therapeutics, informed opinion, and original research. JAPhA publishes original research, reviews, experiences, and opinion articles that link science to contemporary pharmacy practice to improve patient care.