A meta-analysis of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians' accuracy checking proficiency

Delegating the accuracy checking task to appropriately trained pharmacy technicians is desirable in all pharmacy settings, however it requires rigorous evidence prior to implementation to ensure safety. The delegation of accuracy checking has a twofold benefit, it frees time for pharmacists to undertake clinical activities and creates an advanced scope role for pharmacy technicians. Institutions also experience economic benefits when tasks can be reallocated to a lower-cost workforce.

To perform a meta-analysis of pharmacist and technician accuracy rates when completing the final accuracy check on a prepared item.

A systematic literature search was conducted to identify articles that reported the accuracy rates for the final check on prepared items. PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Scopus, and Web of Science were used to retrieve articles. No limit was placed on publication year or item type. Once identified, data were extracted regarding study characteristics and accuracy rates. A meta-analysis was conducted using a random effects model.

Twelve articles were located which reported that 96.23-99.78% of items were accurately checked by pharmacists, and 98.25-99.95% of items were accurately checked by pharmacy technicians. The meta-analysis calculated the pharmacist accuracy rate for 216402 items to be 99.27% (95% CI: 98.77-99.64) and 99.72% (95% CI: 98.60-99.81) for 563296 items for pharmacy technicians. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant at a level of p < 0.0001.

Pharmacy technicians demonstrated a higher level of accuracy, and a lower variation in accuracy rates reported between studies. Improving checking accuracy and pharmacist availability for other clinical tasks is desirable for workforce efficiency and patient safety. These empirical accuracy rates of pharmacy technicians performing accuracy checking could be used by legislative and regulatory bodies to supplement necessary policy changes that improve the safety of the dispensing process.