Current and future delegation of pharmacy activities to technicians in Tennessee

Pharmacists in charge of community and institutional pharmacies in Tennessee were surveyed to identify which activities they currently delegate to technicians and which activities they might consider delegating in the future. Survey questionnaires were mailed to all pharmacists-in-charge registered with the board of pharmacy. Respondents were asked to indicate which of 38 listed pharmacy activities were currently delegated to technicians and which currently undelegated activities would be delegated in the future if legal and policy barriers were removed and if technician training programs were available. Respondents also ranked six types of technician training programs in order of preference and were asked whether they thought technicians should receive official recognition through certification or licensure. A total of 947 questionnaires were returned, for a response rate of 62%. Of the 24 activities that were delegated by significantly different numbers of pharmacists in community and institutional settings, 23 were delegated more frequently by institutional pharmacists. Activities related to drug therapy were delegated least frequently by either group, although community pharmacists delegated the task of recommending nonprescription drugs more often than did institutional pharmacists. If barriers were removed and training programs were available, more pharmacists would delegate activities to technicians than currently do. Most respondents preferred a formal, in-house training program for technicians; more than 65% of pharmacists favored certification of technicians. Pharmacists in Tennessee currently delegate a number of activities to technicians, and more pharmacists would do so if barriers toward technician use were removed and if more trained technicians were available.