Should Pharmacy Technicians Provide Clinical Services or Perform Patient Care Activities in Areas without a Pharmacist?

One priority in achieving “the vision for pharmacy” is to have both pharmacists and pharmacy technicians in all settings contributing to optimal drug therapy outcomes. The context for our argument that pharmacy technicians should provide clinical services and perform patient care activities in areas without a pharmacist can be derived by considering a secondary question: Would patient care be optimized through the provision of clinical services supported by pharmacy technicians? Because pharmacists are in short supply both nationally and internationally, we believe that pharmacy technicians must perform patient care activities in areas without a pharmacist if the profession is to achieve optimal use of the pharmacy workforce and meet increasing expectations for clinical pharmacy.