Virginia Pharmacy Technician Continuing Education

The responsibilities of pharmacy technicians are continuously changing, but the professional status of the technician remains the same. This course will discuss the professional standards and regulations and the importance of daily practice to help ensure the technicians remains in compliance with the law while serving patients in the safest and most effective manner possible.

Vaccinations are the most important tool available to United States health-care providers working to maintain low levels of contagious diseases. This course will discuss the basic principles of immunization, the associated contraindications and precautions of vaccines, and strategies to improve immunization rates.

Vaccination against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis is the best method for preventing these potentially serious conditions. This course will discuss strategies to improve immunization rates and examine the collaboration between the patient and provider to help minimize barriers to immunization in an effort to reduce the spread of contagious diseases.

The introduction of antibiotics into the practice of medicine has transformed the lives of millions of people. Infections that were once lethal are now easily treatable, and medical advances have been able to move forward through the use of antibiotics. Unfortunately, between 20 and 50 percent of all antibiotics administered in hospitals in the United States have been deemed either unnecessary or inappropriate. The misuse of antibiotics has contributed to increases in the rates of Clostridium difficile infections and adverse reactions to antibiotics, as well as the development of resistant strains of bacteria. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that approximately 23,000 deaths annually are caused by antibiotic-resistant organisms. 

This course is designed to challenge the knowledge and skills of registered nurses who are responsible for calculating and adding medications to IV solutions. This course is especially good for nurses who may be returning to an acute care setting or nurses who have not been responsible for drug calculations for a while and now are responsible for accurately making such calculations.

Coronavirus, caused by COVID-19, is a rapidly developing disease.  As this disease continues to expand and engulf communities across the United States, it is critical that healthcare professionals become informed of the national standards of care provided by the Centers for Disease Control and other authoritative agencies.  This basic-level course to provides the latest standardized information that is known about the identification, care, and prevention of the disease.  

Take a look at the history of the apothecary and avoirdupois methods and the use of these methods in contemporary practice, learn the advantages of using the metric system, and the importance of this international system and how it works in different concepts.

This course provides an overview of a pharmacy-based immunization program; it is not designed to cover all situations. Additionally, this course only discusses federal law. Pharmacists must also be familiar with the requirements laid out by their respective state pharmacy laws and practice guidelines.

Diabetes and glycemic medications are in the news every day. Staying ahead of current research and treatment options is an uphill challenge. This course provides the latest in diabetic medications and treatment options, including insulin pump therapies.

Toxicology has been described in literature for thousands of years. In the year 1230, the word “poison” first appeared in the literature, and was defined as a potion or draught that was prepared with deadly ingredients. Since then, poisons and toxicology have remained an important part of history. From intentional poisoning-related deaths to the significant increase in deaths related to drug abuse and overdose, toxicology remains a relevant topic in medicine today. This course will review general principles of toxicology as well as toxidromes and agents of toxicity. It includes specific discussion regarding antidotes and treating toxicologic emergencies with a focus on pharmacologic therapy. 

The management of inventory comprises a large portion of the pharmacy technician’s responsibilities. It is essential to ensure there is an adequate stock of medications and supplies to serve the needs of the patients a pharmacy serves, and careful inventory management can also increase the profitability of a pharmacy. This course will review basic inventory management terminology and procedures for the pharmacy technician.

Thiscourse covers women’s health management and medications used in this patientpopulation. It reviews the physiology of female hormones, and details thevarious hormonal and nonhormonal contraceptive methods available. Management ofpregnant and lactating patients and medication use in these populations isincluded. The course also discusses menopausal treatment and the currentrecommendations regarding hormonal use in this population. Additionally, the epidemiology,pathophysiology, risk factors, and diagnosis of osteoporosis will be discussed.This course gives detailed information on the medications used to treat theseconditions. 

This course covers pharmacy professionals, nurses and physicians who currently are or could be involved in caring for patients infected with TB. This includes health-care professionals who work in both outpatient and inpatient settings

This course will help distinguish between primary and secondary hypertension, characterize the different stages of high blood pressure and identify factors implicated in the development of hypertension.

This course will discuss specific medication issues that can occur in older adults and how pharmacists can help manage these issues. A discussion of fall risk and prevention and the Beer’s criteria for potentially inappropriate medications in older adults will be included, as well as a discussion about deprescribing guidelines.

This course serves to review bothacute and chronic heart failure, including the risk factors for developingheart failure, signs and symptoms, and tests used in diagnosis of heartfailure. In addition, common medications used to treat both acute and chronicheart failure are reviewed, as well as current guidelines for the treatment ofchronic heart failure.

This course reviews the standards of sterile compounding as discussed in USP Chapter <797>. Compliance with these standards is critical to remain compliant with state and federal compounding regulations (United States Pharmacopieal Convention, 2008; American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy, 2014).

According to the World Health Organization, anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric disorders among the general population. This course is designed for pharmacists working in the community who want to increase their knowledge of pharmacologic treatments for anxiety disorders.

Pharmacy technicians play a major role in the safe distribution of medications. This course will discuss common points of medication errors, strategies to reduce errors, and important patient safety considerations.

Infection is asignificant concern for people admitted to an inpatient setting. Infectionsacquired in the hospital setting oftentimes are resistant to antimicrobialtherapy and more virulent in nature. Types of infections include pneumonia,central line- and catheter-associated infections, and infections after surgery.Pharmacists working in inpatient settings should be familiar with theseinfections, common pathogens, and preferred treatment. This continuingeducation module will review these infections, pathogens, treatment regimens,and prevention. 

Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are key in helping health care professionals make choices for wound care products. In this course, we discuss the basics of the skin and wounds and the natural wound healing process. Additionally, the course reviews the wound care products available to augment this process, how to choose the correct product, and what new products to expect in the near future.