Updated PTCB Certification Exam Blueprint Organized by Nine Knowledge Areas

The Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) has announced the update of the Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam (PTCE) Blueprint, which includes the reorganization of current PTCE content into nine knowledge areas. The areas are as follows:

• Pharmacology for Technicians
• Pharmacy Law and Regulations
• Sterile and Nonsterile Compounding
• Medication Safety
• Pharmacy Quality Assurance
• Medication Order Entry and Fill Process
• Pharmacy Inventory Management
• Pharmacy Billing and Reimbursement
• Pharmacy Information Systems Usage and Application

As explained in a PTCB press release, “Changes to the PTCE resulted from a Job Analysis Study completed in February 2012. The profession-wide study, in which over 25,000 pharmacy technicians from every state and practice setting participated, identified the entry level knowledge and skills needed to perform tasks that are most important to protecting public health. A panel of expert pharmacists and pharmacy technicians used the findings to develop the revised PTCE blueprint.” PTCB notes further that “While much of the PTCE’s content remains unchanged, extensive work has gone into reorganizing the blueprint and creating more specific knowledge domains.” PTCB has provided a crosswalk document for those familiar with the current blueprint; the document helps to identify where knowledge listed under the current blueprint will be organized within the new blueprint.