What does a pharmacy technician do?

Under pharmacist supervision, pharmacy technicians:

  • supply medicines to patients, whether on prescription or over the counter
  • assemble medicines for prescriptions
  • provide information to patients and other healthcare professionals.

Pharmacy technicians also:

  • manage areas of medicines supply such as dispensaries
  • supervise other pharmacy staff
  • produce medicines in hospitals and the pharmaceutical industry.

Where do pharmacy technicians work?

Pharmacy technicians work in many different work environments. These include:

  • Community pharmacies (sometimes called retail or high street pharmacy) and hospitals. Most pharmacy technicians work in community and hospital pharmacy
  • Pharmaceutical production or sales in the pharmaceutical industry
  • Prisons, primary care organisations, education and training, the military, veterinary pharmacy and pharmacy organisations.

Pharmacy technician registration

A person calling themselves a pharmacy technician must be registered with the GPhC.

You can search our register to see that a pharmacy technician is practising legally and if they have outstanding fitness to practise allegations against them.

For more information about the process a pharmacist must go through to become and stay registered, see Registering as a pharmacy technician.