What is the primary responsibility of a pharmacy technician?

The primary responsibility of a pharmacy technician is to assist pharmacists in their duties, which primarily includes dispensing prescriptions. This involves accurately preparing and delivering medications to patients, ensuring that the right medication and dosage are provided in accordance with the prescriptions written by healthcare professionals. It is essential for pharmacy technicians to have a strong understanding of medications and refill processes to support pharmacists in their critical role in patient care.

While compounding medications, providing patient counseling, and managing pharmacy inventory are also important tasks that may be part of a pharmacy technician's responsibilities, they are typically secondary to the main duty of ensuring prescriptions are correctly dispensed. Dispensing is pivotal because it directly impacts patient treatment and safety, which underscores its role as the primary responsibility within the pharmacy setting.