PTCB Exam Structure (Blueprint)

PTCB Exam Structure (Blueprint)

The Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam (PTCE), administered by the Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB), is a comprehensive test designed to assess the knowledge and skills required for entry-level pharmacy technicians. Here’s a breakdown of PTCB exam:

 PTCB Exam Format

  • Total Questions: 90 questions (80 scored + 10 unscored pilot questions).
  • Time Limit: 1 hour and 50 minutes (110 minutes).
  • Question Type: Multiple-choice questions (MCQs) with four answer options.
  • Passing Score: Scaled score of 1,400 (on a scale of 1,000 to 1,600).

PTCB Exam Content

The PTCE is divided into four knowledge domains, each with a specific weighting:

  1. Medications (40%):

    • Focuses on drug names (generic and brand), classifications, therapeutic uses, side effects, and interactions.
    • Includes high-alert medications and look-alike/sound-alike (LASA) drugs.

  2. Federal Requirements (12.5%):

    • Covers federal laws and regulations, such as the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), HIPAA, and FDA regulations.
    • Tests knowledge of DEA requirements and drug scheduling.

  3. Patient Safety and Quality Assurance (26.25%):

    • Emphasizes medication safety, error prevention, and quality assurance.
    • Includes pharmacy calculations, compounding, and hazardous drug handling.

  4. Order Entry and Processing (21.25%):

    • Focuses on prescription processing, insurance billing, inventory management, and pharmacy technology.
    • Tests communication skills and customer service.

Key Points

  • Computer-Based Testing: The exam is administered at Pearson VUE testing centers.
  • Unscored Questions: 10 pilot questions are included for future exam development and do not affect your score.
  • Immediate Results: Candidates receive a preliminary pass/fail result at the testing center.
  • Official Score Report: A detailed score report is available online within 2-3 weeks.

PTCB Preparation Tips

  1. Study the PTCB Blueprint: Focus on the four domains and their weightings.
  2. Practice Calculations: Pharmacy math is a significant part of the exam.
  3. Memorize Drug Names: Learn generic and brand names, especially the Top 200 drugs.
  4. Understand Laws and Regulations: Review federal requirements and patient safety guidelines.

PTCB Blueprint

  • Medications
    (40% of PTCE​ Exam Content)

  • S. No.

    Knowledge Domains and Areas

    Flashcards

    Questions

  • 1.1

    Generic names, brand names, and classifications
    of medications

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.2

    Therapeutic equivalence

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.3

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.4

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.5

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.6

    Indications of medications and
    dietary supplements

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.7

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.8

    Narrow therapeutic index (NTI) medications

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.9

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 1.10

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • Federal Requirements
    (12.5% of PTCE​ Exam Content)

  • S. No.

    Knowledge Domains and Areas

    Flashcards

    Questions

  • 2.1

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 2.2

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 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)

    Yes

    Yes

  • 2.4

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 2.5

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • Patient Safety and Quality Assurance
    (26.25% of PTCE​ Exam Content)

  • S. No.

    Knowledge Domains and Areas

    Flashcards

    Questions

  • 3.1

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 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)

    Yes

    Yes

  • 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)

    Yes

    Yes

  • 3.4

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 3.5

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 3.6

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • Order Entry and Processing
    (21.25% of PTCE​ Exam Content)

  • S. No.

    Knowledge Domains and Areas

    Flashcards

    Questions

  • 4.1

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 4.3

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 4.4

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

    Yes

    Yes

  • 4.5

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

    Yes

    Yes

PTCB Practice Questions

PTCB Flashcards

PTCB Calculations

PTCB Quiz

Top 200 Brand Generics
Bonus Compounding Questions / Flashcards
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