Pharmacy Technicians fill and label patients’ prescriptions under the supervision of a Pharmacist. They may record details of, place orders for, take stock of, and store medications and medical supplies and deliver them to patients.
Occupation description
Pharmacy Technicians fill and label patients’ prescriptions under the supervision of a Pharmacist. They may record details of, place orders for, take stock of, and store medications and medical supplies and deliver them to patients.
Alternative Title:
- Dispensary Technician
Occupations not considered under this ANZSCO code:
- Hospital Pharmacist
- Retail Pharmacist
- Pharmacy Sales Assistant
These occupations are classified elsewhere in ANZSCO.
Pharmacy Technician is a VETASSESS Group D occupation.
Pharmacy Technicians fill and label patients’ prescriptions under the supervision of a Pharmacist. They may record details of, place orders for, take stock of, and store medications and medical supplies and deliver them to patients.
A positive assessment of both qualification level and employment duration is required for a positive Skills Assessment Outcome.
Description of Pathways
The information below describes the available pathways for a Skills Assessment under Group D. Please note that in order to achieve a successful Skills Assessment Outcome, a suitable assessment for both qualifications and employment is required.
Pathway 1
This pathway requires a qualification assessed as comparable to the education level of an Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) Certificate IV or higher and in a field highly relevant to the nominated occupation.
Certificate IV or higher includes AQF Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Associate Degree, Bachelor Degree, Graduate Diploma, Master Degree or Doctoral Degree.
In addition, it is essential for applicants to meet the following employment criteria:
- at least one year of post-qualification employment at an appropriate skill level, undertaken in the last five years,
- working 20 hours or more per week, and
- highly relevant to the nominated occupation.
Please note: The qualification level requirement AQF Certificate IV or higher can be satisfied by one qualification, while the requirement for a highly relevant major can be met by a separate qualification at a minimum of AQF Certificate III level.
Pathway 2
This pathway requires a qualification assessed as comparable to the education level of an Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) Certificate IV or higher and in a field not highly relevant to the nominated occupation.
Certificate IV or higher includes AQF Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Associate Degree, Bachelor Degree, Graduate Diploma, Master Degree or Doctoral Degree.
In addition, it is essential for applicants to meet the following employment criteria:
- at least two year of post-qualification employment at an appropriate skill level, undertaken in the last five years,
- working 20 hours or more per week, and
- highly relevant to the nominated occupation.
Please note - This pathway applies where a qualification is assessed at AQF Certificate IV level or higher and is not highly relevant to the nominated occupation, or where no other relevant qualification at AQF Certificate III level is available for consideration.
Pathway 3
This pathway requires a qualification assessed as comparable to the education level of an Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) Certificate III in a field highly relevant to the nominated occupation.
In addition, it is essential for applicants to meet the following employment criteria:
- at least three years of post-qualification employment at an appropriate skill level, undertaken in the last five years,
- working 20 hours or more per week, and
- highly relevant to the nominated occupation.
Pathway 4
This pathway requires a qualification assessed as comparable to the education level of an Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) Certificate IV or higher with or without a highly relevant major field of study to the nominated occupation.
Certificate IV or higher includes AQF Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Associate Degree, Bachelor Degree, Graduate Diploma, Master Degree or Doctoral Degree.
In addition, it is essential for applicants to meet the following employment criteria:
- at least four years of employment at an appropriate skill level that includes at least one year of highly relevant employment within the last five years before applying,
- working 20 hours or more per week, and
- highly relevant to the nominated occupation.
Qualification and Employment Criteria
Employment tasks
Highly relevant tasks include:
- Referring prescriptions to Pharmacists and assisting in preparing medications;
- Filling and labelling patients’ prescriptions under the supervision of a Pharmacist;
- Recording details of, placing orders for, taking stock of, and storing medications and medical supplies and delivering them to patients.
Other tasks may include:
- Compounding products under the supervision of a Pharmacist;
- Managing stock levels and inventory in pharmacies or on wards;
- Assisting with medication audits, reports and reviews;
- Supporting clinical Pharmacists in their routine work, such as screening patients or gathering information for Pharmacist review.
In Australia, there are currently no legal requirements for licensing or registration for the occupation of Pharmacy Technician.
Employment information
Employment as a Pharmacist with standard tasks in that capacity cannot be assessed positively for Pharmacy Technician as these roles require a different skill set. This occupation should also not be confused with Pharmacy Sales Assistant (ANZSCO Code 621411), a person who sells pharmaceutical goods (non-prescription), toiletries and related goods in a retail pharmacy. Pharmacy Sales Assistants may accept prescriptions for filling by Retail Pharmacists and process payment.
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