What does a pharmacist associate do?
Pharmacist associate responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real pharmacist associate resumes:
- Handle sales, including cash, credit / debit cards; manage insurance / Medicaid / Medicare documentation as needed.
- Manage assigned pharmacy workstations and tasks while supporting team members in promptly, safely and accurately filling patient prescriptions.
- Help in filling Rx's as needed.
- Check out prescriptions using POS system.
- Operate POS system to check out customers.
- Back room office duties such as filing, shredding per HIPAA guidelines, properly stocking prescription medication, etc.
- Ensure accurate product delivery in compliance with federal, state, and HIPPA laws, regulations, and best practices.
- Plugged it into the system, fill Rx's, and of course check them out at the cash register.
- Maintain cleanliness and order throughout pharmacy.
- Bag medications according to company guidelines and HIPPA regulations.
- Gather clinical information for pharmacy technician and pharmacist via prescriptions from patients and verbal communication.
- Direct patients to consult with pharmacist as needed or require according to pharmacist direction and pharmacy protocol.
- Prepare chemotherapy medications exercising all safety requirements necessary.
- Assist the pharmacist-in-charge (PIC) with organization and release of TPN to couriers for delivery.
- Understand and adhere to guidelines on accepting and tendering vendor coupons, limits on cash shortages and company shrink guidelines.
Pharmacist associate skills and personality traits
We calculated that 27% of Pharmacist Associates are proficient in Patients, Pharmacy Inventory, and Customer Service. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Detail oriented, and Listening skills.
We break down the percentage of Pharmacist Associates that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 27%
Directed patients to consult with pharmacist as needed or required according to pharmacist direction and pharmacy protocol.
- Pharmacy Inventory, 17%
Maintained pharmacy inventory by checking pharmaceutical stock to determine inventory level anticipating needed medications and removing outdated drugs.
- Customer Service, 15%
Maintained stock and inventory Provided friendly and positive customer service to customers Utilized TaSCO system to accurately dispense proper prescription
- Hippa, 6%
Bagged medications according to company guidelines and HIPPA regulations.
- Telephone Calls, 3%
Answer telephone calls, and maintaining the overall conditions of the Pharmacy Department as defined in the Pharmacy Reference Manual.
- POS, 3%
Handled cash and operated register on POS System.
Common skills that a pharmacist associate uses to do their job include "patients," "pharmacy inventory," and "customer service." You can find details on the most important pharmacist associate responsibilities below.
Customer-service skills. One of the key soft skills for a pharmacist associate to have is customer-service skills. You can see how this relates to what pharmacist associates do because "pharmacy technicians spend much of their time interacting with customers, so being helpful and polite is required of pharmacy technicians in a retail setting." Additionally, a pharmacist associate resume shows how pharmacist associates use customer-service skills: "filled/labeled prescriptions, mixed medications, verified/registered patient medical and insurance information, processed insurance claims, and processed customer transactions. "
Detail oriented. Many pharmacist associate duties rely on detail oriented. "serious health problems can result from mistakes in filling prescriptions," so a pharmacist associate will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways pharmacist associate responsibilities rely on detail oriented: "organized, detail oriented and motivated giving full attention to dates/insurance coverage on dropped off prescriptions to be prepared for filling. "
Listening skills. pharmacist associates are also known for listening skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to pharmacist associate responsibilities, because "pharmacy technicians must communicate clearly with pharmacists and doctors when taking prescription orders." A pharmacist associate resume example shows how listening skills is used in the workplace: "communicated with pharmacists to convey customer concerns about prescriptions and insurance coverage. "
Math skills. pharmacist associate responsibilities often require "math skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "pharmacy technicians need to have an understanding of the math concepts used in pharmacies when counting pills and compounding medications." This resume example shows what pharmacist associates do with math skills on a typical day: "compile everyday statistics like number of patients asking for prescriptions, new received prescriptions and refill orders number. "
Organizational skills. Another crucial skill for a pharmacist associate to carry out their responsibilities is "organizational skills." A big part of what pharmacist associates relies on this skill, since "working as a pharmacy technician involves balancing a variety of responsibilities." How this skill relates to pharmacist associate duties can be seen in an example from a pharmacist associate resume snippet: "inventory management and numerous organizational tasks. "
The three companies that hire the most pharmacist associates are:
- Kinney Drugs8 pharmacist associates jobs
- Northwell Health6 pharmacist associates jobs
- WIS4 pharmacist associates jobs
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Compare different pharmacist associates
Pharmacist associate vs. Compounding technician
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a pharmacist associate are more likely to require skills like "pharmacy inventory," "customer service," "hippa," and "telephone calls." On the other hand, a job as a compounding technician requires skills like "iv," "direct supervision," "quality standards," and "customer satisfaction." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
The education levels that compounding technicians earn slightly differ from pharmacist associates. In particular, compounding technicians are 0.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a pharmacist associate. Additionally, they're 0.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Pharmacist associate vs. Microfilm technician
Each career also uses different skills, according to real pharmacist associate resumes. While pharmacist associate responsibilities can utilize skills like "patients," "pharmacy inventory," "customer service," and "hippa," microfilm technicians use skills like "data entry," "microfilm equipment," "clips etc," and "office equipment."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Microfilm technicians tend to reach similar levels of education than pharmacist associates. In fact, they're 2.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Pharmacist associate vs. Technician, inventory specialist
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, pharmacist associates are more likely to have skills like "telephone calls," "pos," "quality customer service," and "medical terminology." But a technician, inventory specialist is more likely to have skills like "data entry," "patient care," "physical inventory," and "purchase orders."
When it comes to education, technicians, inventory specialist tend to earn similar degree levels compared to pharmacist associates. In fact, they're 1.0% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 1.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Pharmacist associate vs. Reprographics technician
Even though a few skill sets overlap between pharmacist associates and reprographics technicians, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a pharmacist associate might have more use for skills like "patients," "pharmacy inventory," "customer service," and "hippa." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of reprographics technicians require skills like "reprographics," "stitching," "flyers," and "collating. "
Reprographics technicians reach similar levels of education compared to pharmacist associates, in general. The difference is that they're 0.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 1.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of pharmacist associate
Updated January 8, 2025
