Course Code: CSU-PTMA 11

Course Duration: 6 months

Contact Hours: 780

Tuition: $3950

This comprehensive course will prepare students to enter the pharmacy field and take the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board’s PTCB exam. Course content includes pharmacy medical terminology, reading and interpreting prescriptions and defining generic and brand names drugs and much, much more! Program also includes an optional clinical externship at a local health care provider! This also program prepares students to function effectively in many of the administrative and clerical positions in the health care industry. It provides students a well-rounded introduction to medical administration that delivers the skills students require to obtain an administrative medical assistant position or advance within their current health care career. This course covers the following key areas and topics:

  • Pharmacy calculations
  • Medical terminology specific to the pharmacy
  • Skills to read and interpret prescriptions
  • Review of the top 200 drugs
  • Skills to identify drugs by generic and brand names
  • Dosage calculations, I.V. flow rates, drug compounding, and dose conversions
  • Dispensing of prescriptions, inventory control, and billing and reimbursement
  • History and background of the medical assisting profession
  • Interpersonal skills, medical ethics, and basic medical law
  • Telephone techniques and skills for scheduling appointments
  • Medical terminology
  • Basics of insurance billing and coding
  • Medical records management, confidentiality of the medical record, initiating a medical record for a new client and filing reports in the medical record
  • HIPAA review and patient bill of rights and confidentiality
  • Financial and practice management
  • Health insurance coverage, and billing and coding procedures
  • Professional fees, billing and collecting procedures, accounting systems and credit arrangements
  • Medical accounting, financial statements, cost analysis, and budgets for the medical practice
  • Specimen collection, laboratory safety and federal and state regulations
  • Assisting with medical emergencies

Education and National Certifications

  • Pharmacy Technicians should have or be pursuing a high school diploma or GED.
  • There are no state approval and/or state requirements associated with this program.
  • Students who complete this course are prepared for national certification:
    • Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) national technician certification exam
    • National Health career Association (NHA) Certified Medical Administrative assistant (CMAA) exam

National Certification

Students who complete the Columbia Southern University Pharmacy Technician program will be prepared to sit for the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB) national technician certification exam and the National Health career Association (NHA) Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (CMAA) exam. Although there are no state eligibility or registration requirements for Medical Administrative Assistants, in order to work as a pharmacy technician, many states nationwide are requiring that technicians achieve national PTCB technician certification. This comprehensive program is designed to prepare students to sit for this PTCB national certification exam and the NHA-CMAA exam. Students who complete this program can and do sit for these national certification exams and are qualified, eligible and prepared to do so.

Clinical Externship / Hands on Training / Practicum

Although not a requirement of this program, once students complete this program they have the ability to participate in a clinical externship and/or hands on practicum so as to practice the skills necessary to perform the job requirements of a Pharmacy Technician and or a Medical Administrative Assistant. Students will be assisted with completing a resume and/or other requirements necessary to work in a hospital, physicians practice, clinic and/or with other health care organizations. All students who complete this program are eligible to participate in an externship and will be placed in a health care organization near their location. Columbia Southern University works with national healthcare organizations and has the ability to place students in clinical externship opportunities nationwide.