Before Andrea Bremer became a pharmacy technician, she worked in the food service industry. While this might seem irrelevant, her customer service training is directly applicable to her work. Andrea began as a professional pharmacy technician with only this experience. She then did on-the-job training at a pharmacy, and achieved a 9 months of training, or about 1,440 hours.
With these hours under her belt, Andrea was granted a pharmacy technician license. To earn her separate nation certification as a pharmacy technician,Andrea also took the CPhT exam given by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB). She also became a chair on the board for the California Pharmacists Association. She now owns Med-Rx Sources, LLC, her own pharmacy staffing and recruiting company with placements nationwide.
Andrea has a positive outlook that is contagious, and her take perspective the field will help increase the odds of your success as a pharmacy technician. She advises that the worst thing you can say when you interview for your first job as a pharmacy technician is that you have no experience. Of course you have experience: life experience. The most important rule to getting your first job as a pharmacy technician, then, is to get your foot in the door. The rest will follow.
Andrea says that while you are studying for your CphT certification, you should make the connection between what you are attempting to master in chemistry or mathematics by applying it to daily life. Cooking, for example, is compounding, or the mixture of different ingredients in specific ratios. There are many common tasks we do everyday that can illustrate the concepts that you learn in your coursework and on the job.
Andrea decided to contribute to pharmacytechnician.net because she wants to share tips for learning and retaining medical terminology as well as advice on how to find your first job and succeed in the field. Because she is a recruiter in the field, raising the level of the talent pool for pharmacy technicians helps her practice as well. Though she did not earn a specific degree in pharmacy technology, Andrea supports pharmacy technician schools, as well as the networks and relationships that they can inspire.
As a veteran pharmacy technician who aspires to be in management, Andrea has returned to school. In 2013, she is scheduled to complete her online Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy Tech from Kaplan University. She knows that education will further enrich her career, and she encourages students to pursue internships, educational programs and lifelong training to create fulfilling professional and personal lives.
