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Pharmacist technician trainee vs laboratory assistant

The differences between pharmacist technician trainees and laboratory assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a pharmacist technician trainee has an average salary of $50,647, which is higher than the $34,168 average annual salary of a laboratory assistant.

The top three skills for a pharmacist technician trainee include patients, HIPAA and phone calls. The most important skills for a laboratory assistant are patients, phlebotomy, and customer service.

Pharmacist technician trainee vs laboratory assistant overview

Pharmacist Technician TraineeLaboratory Assistant
Yearly salary$50,647$34,168
Hourly rate$24.35$16.43
Growth rate5%9%
Number of jobs97,22750,853
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 29%Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Average age3844
Years of experience-12

What does a pharmacist technician trainee do?

A pharmacist technician trainee is responsible for supporting the staff on pharmacy operations, assisting patients on their medications, and providing other needs according to prescriptions. Pharmacist technician trainees maintain the cleanliness and orderliness of the facility, including the adequacy of medicine storage and creating purchase requests. They also respond to patients' inquiries and concerns, as well as reiterating the instructions and dosage of medicines to take. A pharmacist technician trainee verifies order forms and processes payment accurately, escalating discrepancies to the supervisor immediately.

What does a laboratory assistant do?

Laboratory assistants work for researchers, scientists, or professors in the laboratory setting. They are expected to have a solid background in the field of study of the laboratory they are assigned to. They do a variety of tasks in the laboratory, such as setting up equipment, observing experiments, analyzing results, creating reports, and recommending improvements to the testing. They may also be assigned to clean and sanitize laboratory equipment as needed. Laboratory assistants should have good research skills, analytical skills, and organizational skills.

Pharmacist technician trainee vs laboratory assistant salary

Pharmacist technician trainees and laboratory assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Pharmacist Technician TraineeLaboratory Assistant
Average salary$50,647$34,168
Salary rangeBetween $24,000 And $105,000Between $26,000 And $44,000
Highest paying CityMilford, CTBoston, MA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaMassachusetts
Best paying companyAmazonUST Global
Best paying industry-Manufacturing

Differences between pharmacist technician trainee and laboratory assistant education

There are a few differences between a pharmacist technician trainee and a laboratory assistant in terms of educational background:

Pharmacist Technician TraineeLaboratory Assistant
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 29%Bachelor's Degree, 64%
Most common majorPharmacyBiology
Most common college-New York University

Pharmacist technician trainee vs laboratory assistant demographics

Here are the differences between pharmacist technician trainees' and laboratory assistants' demographics:

Pharmacist Technician TraineeLaboratory Assistant
Average age3844
Gender ratioMale, 21.5% Female, 78.5%Male, 43.6% Female, 56.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 10.1% White, 60.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 13.9% White, 53.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage5%8%

Differences between pharmacist technician trainee and laboratory assistant duties and responsibilities

Pharmacist technician trainee example responsibilities.

  • Manage assigned pharmacy workstations and tasks while supporting team members in promptly, safely and accurately filling patient prescriptions.
  • Master Sig codes and math skills require to accurately input prescriptions.
  • Restock Pyxis machines, emergency crash carts, and patient cart medications.
  • Perform chemotherapy calculations and prepare chemotherapy drugs.
  • Maintain confidentiality and adhere to strict HIPAA guidelines.
  • Fill medication in Pyxis machines on each individual floor
  • Show more

Laboratory assistant example responsibilities.

  • Comfort frighten patients and maintain an exceptionally bright professional demeanor to accomplish a procedure that makes most people very uncomfortable.
  • Maintain and QC check laboratory equipment.
  • Preform laboratory duties using microscopes, centrifuges and a host of other laboratory equipment.
  • Provide excellent customer service to patients while accurately updating patient demographics, insurance and billing information in LabCorp LCM program.
  • Provide continuing education in the form of periodic in-services relating the phlebotomy procedures, tests and proper specimen collection requirements.
  • Process eyewear to meet national ANSII and OSHA standards.
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Pharmacist technician trainee vs laboratory assistant skills

Common pharmacist technician trainee skills
  • Patients, 31%
  • HIPAA, 6%
  • Phone Calls, 6%
  • Quality Customer Service, 5%
  • Math, 5%
  • Compassion, 4%
Common laboratory assistant skills
  • Patients, 15%
  • Phlebotomy, 12%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • Lab Procedures, 5%
  • Specimen Collection, 5%
  • Patient Care, 5%

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