Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) Practice Exam

Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) Practice Exam

 

The Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) credential from Pharmacy Technician Certification Board shows that a person is qualified to help pharmacists safely and accurately prepare and give out medicines. It proves they understand how to handle prescriptions, measure medication doses, and keep proper records while following strict safety rules.
This certification tells employers that the person can work in a pharmacy or healthcare setting to support pharmacists. They help keep the pharmacy running smoothly by handling medication orders, organizing stock, and answering basic customer questions under the guidance of a licensed pharmacist.

 

Who should take the Exam?

This exam is ideal for:

• Pharmacy assistants or trainees
• People working in retail or hospital pharmacies
• Healthcare support staff
• Students interested in a healthcare career
• Individuals seeking stable entry-level healthcare jobs

 

Skills Required

• Basic knowledge of medicines and their uses
• Strong attention to detail and accuracy
• Communication and teamwork skills
• Organizational and time management abilities
• Ethical understanding and patient confidentiality

 

Knowledge Gained

• Understanding of pharmacy operations and workflow
• Knowledge of drug classifications and safe handling
• Skills to prepare, package, and label medications
• Awareness of laws and regulations in pharmacy practice
• Ability to support pharmacists in patient care and inventory control

 

Course Outline

The Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT) Exam covers the following topics -

 

Domain 1: Overview Medications 40%

1.1 Generic names, brand names, and classifications of medications 

1.2 Therapeutic equivalence

1.3 Common and life-threatening drug interactions and contraindications (e.g., drug-disease, drug-drug, drug-dietary supplement, drug-laboratory, drug nutrient)

1.4* Strengths/dose, dosage forms, routes of administration, special handling and administration instructions, and duration of drug therapy

1.5 Common and severe medication side effects, adverse effects, and allergies

1.6 Indications of medications and dietary supplements

1.7* Drug stability (e.g., oral suspensions, insulin, reconstitutables, injectables, vaccinations)

1.8 Narrow therapeutic index (NTI) medications

1.9 Physical and chemical incompatibilities related to non-sterile compounding and reconstitution 

1.10 Proper storage of medications (e.g., temperature ranges, light sensitivity, restricted access) 

 

Domain 2: Understand Federal Requirements 12.5%

2.1 Federal requirements for handling and disposal of non-hazardous, hazardous, and pharmaceutical substances and waste

2.2* Federal requirements for controlled substance prescriptions (i.e., new, refill, transfer) and DEA controlled substance schedules

2.3 Federal requirements (e.g., DEA, FDA) for controlled substances (i.e., receiving, storing, ordering, labeling, dispensing, reverse distribution, take-back programs, and loss or theft of)

2.4* Federal requirements for restricted drug programs and related medication processing (e.g., pseudoephedrine, Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies [REMS])

2.5 FDA recall requirements (e.g., medications, devices, supplies, supplements, classifications)

 

Domain 3: Learn About Patient Safety and Quality Assurance 26.25%

3.1 High-alert/risk medications and look-alike/sound-alike [LASA] medications

3.2 Error prevention strategies (e.g., prescription or medication order to correct patient, Tall Man lettering, separating inventory, leading and trailing zeros, bar code usage, limit use of error-prone abbreviations)

3.3* Issues that require pharmacist intervention (e.g., drug utilization review [DUR], adverse drug event [ADE], OTC recommendation, therapeutic substitution, misuse, adherence, post-immunization follow-up, allergies, drug interactions)

3.4 Event reporting procedures (e.g., medication errors, adverse effects, and product integrity, MedWatch, near miss, root-cause analysis [RCA])

3.5* Types of prescription errors (e.g., abnormal doses, early refill, incorrect quantity, incorrect patient, incorrect drug)

3.6 Hygiene and cleaning standards (e.g., handwashing, personal protective equipment [PPE], cleaning counting trays, countertop, and equipment)

 

Domain 4: Understand Order Entry and Processing 21.25%

4.1* Procedures to compound non-sterile products (e.g., ointments, mixtures, liquids, emulsions, suppositories, enemas)

4.2* Formulas, calculations, ratios, proportions, alligations, conversions, Sig codes (e.g., b.i.d., t.i.d., Roman numerals), abbreviations, medical terminology, and symbols for days supply, quantity, dose, concentration, dilutions

4.3* Equipment/supplies required for drug administration (e.g., package size, unit dose, diabetic supplies, spacers, oral and injectable syringes)

4.4* Lot numbers, expiration dates, and National Drug Code (NDC) numbers

4.5 Procedures for identifying and returning dispensable, non-dispensable, and expired medications and supplies (e.g., credit return, return to stock, reverse distribution)