Unmasking the Unrecognized: Exploring Registered Pharmacy Technicians' Stressors During COVID-19 Through a Demands-Resources Inquiry and Looking Ahead.

Canadian registered pharmacy technicians (RPTs) were vital in supporting pharmacy operations during the pandemic. However, they have received little attention during or pre-pandemic. This study aimed to identify and understand the stressors experienced by Canadian RPTs during the pandemic and gain insights on lessons learned to help improve the profession. Through a descriptive qualitative design, virtual semi-structured focus groups were conducted with RPTs who were recruited through various sampling methods across Canada. Data were inductively analyzed and then deductively; themes were categorized using the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model. We reached data saturation after 4 focus group sessions with a total of 16 participants. As per the JD-R model, job demands included: (1) increased work volume and hours to meet patient demand; (2) drug shortages and managing prescriptions increased due to influx of orders coinciding with restricted access to medications; (3) fear of the unknown nature of COVID-19 met with frequent change in practices due to protocol changes and ineffective communication; and, (4) the pandemic introduced several factors leading to increased staff shortages. Themes pertaining to resources included: (1) poor incentives and limited access to well-being resources; (2) limited personal protective equipment delaying work operations; (3) and a general lack of knowledge or appreciation of the profession impacting work morale. Lessons learned from the pandemic were also provided. Overall, our findings revealed an imbalance where RPTs experienced high job demands with limited resources. Improved leadership within pharmacies, including improved communication between team members, is required. Furthermore, efforts to highlight and recognize the work of RPTs to the public is important to help improve enrollment, especially with their recent scope of practice expansion.

Retraining transplant pharmacy staff to reduce Medicare Part B prescription billing errors post-transplant.

BACKGROUND: Medicare Part B (MedB) imposes penalties for certain errors in prescription billing of post-transplant medications, which can greatly affect pharmacy revenue. To prevent MedB billing fines, pharmacy staff must be cognizant of specific MedB requirements. OBJECTIVE: This quality improvement project aimed to retrain certified pharmacy technicians (CPhTs) on common billing errors and evaluate changes in error rates and potential fines after retraining. We aimed to determine whether retraining CPhTs minimizes MedB prescription billing errors and reduces potential fines owed by the Vanderbilt Transplant Pharmacy (VTP) to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). METHODS: This was a single-center, quality improvement study including post-transplant patients with at least one MedB prescription billing error who filled prescriptions through VTP. All CPhTs involved in MedB prescription billing received retraining focused on the top 3 errors in MedB billing identified at VTP: early refills, missing relationship of caller to patient and residence of patient on order documentation, or no day supply remaining recorded on the order file. Retraining consisted of developing a training checklist, testing current knowledge levels, individualized nonpunitive coaching based on technician specific errors, and retesting for knowledge retention. Outcomes included the number of prescriptions with at least one MedB prescription billing error and the projected amount of dollars fined owing to errors recorded during the 3 months before and 3 months after retraining. RESULTS: Fourteen CPhTs received retraining. Average refill too soon errors decreased by 37.5% (10.7% vs. 6.7%), average missing relationship by 21.7% (7.7% vs. 6%), and day supply errors by 39.7% (1.7% vs. 1%). Error reductions equaled a 28.2% decrease (approximately $12,700) in potential fines. CONCLUSION: Retraining focused on MedB billing error successfully reduced error frequency and fines from CMS. MedB billing error fines can be costly for pharmacies dispensing high-cost medications; therefore, identifying common errors and training staff can be useful and financially prudent.

Characteristics, knowledge, attitude, and practice of pharmacy personnel in supporting tuberculosis treatment: A multicenter cross-sectional study in a high-burden tuberculosis country.

BACKGROUND: Positive roles of community pharmacy in tuberculosis (TB) care have been widely reported. However, the actual practice of supporting TB treatment is not optimal yet. OBJECTIVES: We analyzed the current practice of community pharmacy personnel and its factors in supporting the successful treatment of TB patients in Indonesia, aiming to develop strategies for effective and sustainable TB practice models for the community pharmacy. METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional survey in 3 areas representing Indonesia's eastern, central, and western parts. Development and validation of the questionnaire were conducted to assess 4 domains, that is, characteristics, knowledge, attitudes, and practice of community pharmacy personnel in supporting the successful treatment of TB patients. Data were collected with purposive convenience sampling using online and offline questionnaires. Descriptive analyses were used to summarize factors in each domain, while binary logistic regression was used to analyze the associated factors of the practice. RESULTS: Thirty-five questionnaire items indicated a valid instrument, and the study successfully included 844 participants who comprised pharmacists (n = 473, 56%) and pharmacy assistants (n = 371, 44%). Although most of the knowledge items were correctly answered by more than 60% of the participants, items related to TB signs, risk groups, drug regimens, and medicine uses were still less than 60%. This was in line with exposure to updated TB training in only 51% of the participants (n = 426). Most of the participants had a positive attitude toward their professional role (n = 736, 87%), capability (n = 646, 77%), and consequences (n = 655, 78%) in supporting TB treatment. However, this was not aligned with the actual practice of supporting TB treatment, intensively performed by only 1.3% of participants (n = 11). We identified several factors associated with the practice, that is, a pharmacy assistant background (P < 0.05), short working time (P < 0.05), experience in TB training (P < 0.001), and a positive attitude (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: This study highlighted a limited number of community pharmacy personnel intensively practicing as TB treatment supporters in Indonesia. An interventional package considering the identified factors is needed to develop effective and sustainable practices in the real world.

Detección de las necesidades de capacitación de los asistentes de farmacia / Detection of training needs in pharmacy assistants

Introducción: La capacitación es, sin duda, uno de los temas actuales más importantes cuando se habla de competitividad, innovación y mejora continua de una empresa. Este proceso implica: detección de necesidades, planeación, implementación, evaluación, retroalimentación y seguimiento de resultados. El eje fundamental de este proceso es el Diagnóstico de Necesidades de Capacitación, pues señala de manera precisa los aspectos sobre los cuales ha de trabajar el capacitador. Objetivo: Realizar un diagnóstico de las necesidades de capacitación de los asistentes de farmacia del Municipio Santa Clara. Métodos: Para elaborar el Diagnóstico de Necesidades de Capacitación se utilizó el método comparativo. Este método se basa en la identificación de las discrepancias entre lo que es y lo debe ser, lo que posibilita constatar los requisitos que son necesarios cubrir. Se utilizaron como técnicas la entrevista y la encuesta. Resultados: Finalmente, después del análisis de todos los datos obtenidos de las matrices y preguntas abiertas, se elaboró el Diagnóstico de Necesidades de Capacitación final que se entregó a la Empresa Farmacias y Ópticas. Conclusiones: Estos resultados mostraron que esta empresa necesita de manera inmediata implementar actividades de capacitación a sus asistentes de farmacia en lo referente a conocimientos.

Introduction: training is, undoubtedly one of the most important current issues when talking about competitiveness, innovation and continuous improvement of a company. This process involves: detection of needs, planning, implementation, evaluation, feedback and monitoring of results. The fundamental axis of this process is the Diagnosis of Training Needs, since it indicates precisely the aspects on which the trainer must work. Objective: to carry out a diagnosis of the training needs in pharmacy assistants from Santa Clara municipality. Methods: the comparative method was use to prepare the Training Needs Diagnosis. This method is based on the identification of discrepancies between what is and what should be; it made possible to verify the necessary requirements to be met. Interviews and surveys were used as techniques. Results: Finally, after analyzing all the data obtained from the matrices and the open questions, a final Diagnosis of Training Needs was prepared and delivered to the Pharmacy and Optics Company. Conclusions: these results showed that this company needs to immediately implement training activities for their pharmacy assistants in terms of knowledge.

Ohio pharmacy personnel's burnout and wellbeing: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: While burnout is a well-known phenomenon among physicians and nurses, burnout among pharmacists and pharmacy personnel is understudied and less recognized. OBJECTIVES: The primary objectives of this study were to describe and compare Ohio pharmacy personnel's self-reports of burnout and wellbeing prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: A one-time online survey was completed by over 13,000 health care professionals in Ohio in July and August 2021. This brief report describes a subanalysis of the 1452 participating pharmacy professionals licensed by the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy. RESULTS: Most survey respondents identified as White (90.84%) and female (70.04%), including pharmacists (59.16%) and pharmacy technicians (38.15%). Findings demonstrated a 360.55% increase in feeling emotionally drained "every day" during the pandemic. Participants felt emotionally drained more frequently; cared less about what happened to patients; felt less accomplished; felt down, depressed, or hopeless more frequently; had more thoughts of suicide; and were more concerned about their substance use during the pandemic than prior to it. CONCLUSION: Pharmacy personnel are experiencing some dimensions of burnout and poor wellbeing more frequently. These issues were present prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and now require even swifter attention as outcomes have worsened. Increased awareness of burnout among pharmacy personnel is required. Additionally, policy and organizational interventions are recommended to improve pharmacy personnel wellbeing.

Despair and hope: Is the retail community pharmacy workforce in danger of becoming a monopsony labor market?

OBJECTIVE: Mergers of big chain retail community pharmacies can affect the competitiveness of the pharmacy workforce to negotiate better wages and work conditions. However, it is unclear whether these types of mergers are generalizable to the U.S. pharmacy workforce. We should observe this effect when comparing annual wage trends between retail community pharmacy workers and nonretail community pharmacy workers. In the absence of this effect, annual wage trends would be similar. To examine this theory, annual wage trends for community pharmacy workers were compared with hospital pharmacy workers between 2012 and 2022. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: A serial cross-sectional study was performed to compare the annual wages between retail community pharmacy workers and hospital pharmacy workers between 2012 and 2022 using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS). Pharmacy workforce was categorized as pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacy aides (clerks) and grouped into retail or hospital pharmacy settings based on the North American Industry Classification System. Pharmacy workers' annual wages were based on the U.S. BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages data. OUTCOME MEASURES: Annual wages. RESULTS: Between 2012 and 2022, statistically significant annual wage reduction was greater among pharmacists in the retail than pharmacists in the hospital setting by -$1974 (95% CI -$2921 to -$1026) per year. However, these trends were not statistically significant among pharmacy technicians and pharmacy aides. Pharmacy technicians in the retail and hospital settings had a 3.4% and 7.0% increase in average annual wages, respectively. Pharmacy aides in the retail and hospital settings had a 16.8% and 21.6% increase in average annual wages, respectively. CONCLUSION: Although pharmacists' annual wages decreased, it is unclear whether this was caused by the monopsony labor market. These findings suggest that there may be inefficiencies in the retail community pharmacy labor market, which may stimulate policies to improve pharmacy workforce conditions and patient safety.

The association between number of learners and pharmacist and technician levels of burnout.

PURPOSE: Little is known about the relationship between learner load and pharmacist and pharmacy technician burnout. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the association between burnout and the number of learners (residents, students, and new employees) assigned to pharmacists or pharmacy technicians. METHODS: A validated survey to measure burnout and professional fulfillment was administered to employees of a university health system's pharmacy service in 2019. A threshold analysis determined the optimal cutoff for number of learners trained that maximized the ability to predict binary outcomes. Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests were used, and effect sizes between percentages were reported. Finally, the adjusted associations between number of learners and outcomes were assessed using logistic regression. RESULTS: A total of 448 pharmacy staff members were included in the analysis. Of those, 57% (n = 254) worked in ambulatory care, 27.4% (n = 122) worked in an inpatient setting, and 15.7% (n = 70) worked in infrastructure. Pharmacists working in an inpatient setting who reported training 4 or more learners per year indicated significantly higher rates of burnout than those training fewer learners on both a single-item burnout assessment (64.3% vs 31.0%; P = 0.01; effect size, 0.68) and a 10-item burnout assessment (54.8% vs 13.8%; P = 0.01; effect size, 0.91). Similar results were not observed in pharmacists working in ambulatory care and infrastructure positions or in pharmacy technicians. CONCLUSION: Added precepting and training responsibilities may be associated with higher levels of burnout among pharmacy team members, particularly inpatient pharmacists.

Program for advancing supervisor skills among pharmacy technicians.

PURPOSE: This publication outlines the development and implementation of a leadership enhancement program for pharmacy technician supervisors at University of Michigan Health (UMH). The program aims to equip these supervisors with the skills and knowledge necessary to excel as leaders in the pharmacy field, addressing the pressing need for strong leaders in healthcare. SUMMARY: UMH recognized the need to cultivate effective leaders within its pharmacy department due to the impending shortage of pharmacy leaders and the rising demand for technicians and future pharmacists. To meet this need, a leadership enhancement program was introduced, offering flexibility and a comprehensive framework for enhancing the skills of pharmacy technician supervisors. The program covers annual, biennial, and flexible rotating topics and offers a structured monthly format for active participation. Additionally, the program utilizes a rigorous selection process for training resources and continuous quality improvement efforts to ensure effectiveness. Through developing leadership skills among technician supervisors, the organization aims to achieve tangible benefits, including decreased turnover rates and increased employee satisfaction. CONCLUSION: The program for enhancing supervisor skills at UMH is a flexible and adaptable framework for leadership development in pharmacy. Its success in enhancing leadership skills for future pharmacy leaders is crucial in the evolving healthcare landscape and supports the growth of leaders in this domain. By acknowledging the value and expertise that pharmacy technicians bring, organizations can harness their potential and, in turn, benefit the entire healthcare system. This program's principles are transferable to other organizations seeking to empower their employees with tools to thrive in new leadership roles, thus contributing to their growth and success.

Preparing community pharmacy teams for health information exchange (HIE).

BACKGROUND: Health information exchanges (HIEs) facilitate health care professionals' electronic sharing of patient information across different organizations. When community pharmacists have access to HIE, they can further contribute to improved patient outcomes. However, several implementation challenges are noted, which impede sustained pharmacist access to HIE. To our knowledge, no bidirectional HIE interface design and pharmacy team-informed implementation process has been documented. In response, our research team designed and developed an HIE interface prototype for use specifically by community pharmacy teams to access local HIE data through their pharmacy dispensing software. OBJECTIVES: To 1) identify barriers, facilitators, and recommendations for using HIE data in community pharmacies and 2) create a curated list of resources addressing identified implementation needs to aid future implementation of a fully functional, bidirectional HIE interface by community pharmacy teams. METHODS: Pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and patients from three pharmacy sites within the Community Pharmacy Enhanced Services Network of Indiana participated in individual semi-structured interviews. Interview questions were mapped to select constructs across all domains of the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. Interview transcripts were deductively coded. A subset of participants participated in Evidence-Based Quality Improvement sessions to iteratively update planned resource items needed to support future HIE implementation. RESULTS: We interviewed 23 total participants: 8 pharmacists, 8 pharmacy technicians, and 7 patients. Five facilitators, four barriers, and two recommendations were identified. These were further characterized into four key implementation needs: instruction on how to use HIE; guidance on workflow and team roles; resources that are patient-facing; and resources that are provider-facing, resulting in 16 planned implementation resources. CONCLUSION: Our study provides the first-of-its-kind list of pharmacy team-informed resources to facilitate sustainability and scalability of HIE implementation in community pharmacies.

Pharmacy work: Intrinsic motivation and extrinsic rewards across role and setting.

BACKGROUND: Pharmacists' and pharmacy technicians' stress and job turnover are at an all-time high. Both intrinsic motivations and extrinsic rewards play key roles in workplace satisfaction. Differences in workplace satisfaction have been identified when comparing chain pharmacies, independent pharmacies, and health systems work settings. OBJECTIVES: Cognitive evaluation theory was applied to explore the influence of intrinsic motivations and extrinsic rewards on both pharmacists' and pharmacy technicians' perceptions of motivations and rewards across various workplace settings. METHODS: A 92-item questionnaire was administered to 129 pharmacists and 111 pharmacy technicians. Participants were primarily recruited at a state pharmacy association annual meeting and via online forums. The questionnaire captured participant demographics including role and work setting (i.e., chain, independent, or health systems), demographic variables, and perceptions about work including autonomy, competence, relationships, pay satisfaction, and benefit satisfaction. RESULTS: A 2-way multivariate analysis of covariance was conducted to test hypothesized differences by role (pharmacist or pharmacy technician) and setting (chain, independent, or health systems). Results show pharmacy personnel in independent and hospital systems settings felt more positive about relationships, competence, pay satisfaction, and benefit satisfaction than those in chain settings. There were no role differences between pharmacists and pharmacy technicians on these outcomes. DISCUSSION: These findings highlight challenges of working in chain pharmacy environments. Results reveal that although pay does not differ across work settings, feelings about both the work and compensation satisfaction do vary across settings. Because role did not drive these relationships, this suggests a need to attend to working conditions for pharmacy personnel. CONCLUSION: Intrinsic motivation elements of competence and relationships are statistically different among employment settings. Relationships and feelings of competence are perceived more favorably in independent and health systems, rather than chain settings. More studies on intrinsic motivations of pharmacy employees within these settings are needed.

Pharmacy technician development: Insight into training, preparedness, and career-path perceptions.

BACKGROUND: Although opportunities for pharmacy technicians may be expanding, an increasing number of technicians have transitioned out of their roles. It is important to consider what could be done within education and training to promote the retention of pharmacy technicians. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to survey pharmacy technicians in the state of Ohio to identify key components of professional development. METHODS: A survey was distributed through REDCap to 24,444 pharmacy technicians with active pharmacy technician licenses in the state of Ohio. Inclusion criteria required survey respondents to be at least 18 years old and currently working as a pharmacy technician. RESULTS: A total of 1386 surveys were fully completed (approximately 6% response rate). Professional development opportunities provided by employers varied across most practice sites, but continuing education was the most reported opportunity. Attending conferences, taking specialized training courses, and tuition reimbursement were less common. The top 3 barriers to professional development participation included additional cost, time, and perceived value. Guidance and mentorship from peers, achieving national certification, and formal on-the-job training were the most helpful in job preparation and training. The main reasons to achieve certification included increased pay, development opportunity, or employer requirement. When considering preparation for new roles, 57% of pharmacy technicians felt prepared or very prepared for the job after 90 days. As technicians continued throughout their careers, the training transitioned from formal hands-on training to self-guided training. CONCLUSION: Pharmacy technicians have a desire to remain in their roles, but participation in professional development opportunities was lacking owing to availability of options and barriers. Pharmacy practice sites interested in retaining technicians should invest in offering and encouraging pharmacy technicians to participate in development opportunities. To continue to develop pharmacy technicians, ongoing education and training tied to increased compensation may improve retention and foster an improved learning environment.

Pharmacy technicians trained as community health workers: A prospective multicenter cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Community health workers (CHWs) are health professionals who are experts in linking patients to health resources. Although CHWs are employed in a variety of health institutions, access to their services may be challenging for patients in underserved locations. Community pharmacies are uniquely positioned to mitigate this barrier as they provide readily accessible care for patients residing in these areas. OBJECTIVES: To 1) quantify and report the CHW services provided by certified pharmacy technicians (CPhTs) in an underserved population and 2) provide an initial framework for the implementation of CHW services in community pharmacies or similar health care settings. METHODS: This prospective cohort study reports the findings of training CPhTs as CHWs in 3 independent community pharmacies from January 1, 2021 to July 1, 2021. CPhT-CHWs conducted monthly visits by phone, patient home, or pharmacy and documented services using a standardized assessment form. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the baseline characteristics of the patient population, service codes, types of services and referrals made, and time spent per visit by CPhT-CHWs. RESULTS: A total of 198 patient visits by phone, patient home, or at the pharmacy were completed in a 6-month timespan. During these visits, the CPhT-CHW provided 351 services (203 primary services and 149 secondary services) and completed 51 referrals. The average time spent per visit (standard deviation) was 15.5 (11.5) 68.9 (35.4), and 30.6 (16.8) minutes for phone, home, and pharmacy visits, respectively. Patient home visits resulted in the highest average primary services per visit, longest time spent with the patient, and accounted for a majority of social services. CONCLUSION: CPhT-CHWs were able to use various methods to contact these patients to further develop patient-to-provider and patient-to-pharmacy relationships. Training CPhTs as CHWs can be an effective way to increase patient contact and provide additional health services.

Assessment of technology-assisted technician verification of compounded intravenous sterile preparations versus pharmacist verification.

PURPOSE: This study is an evaluation of technology-assisted technician verification (TATV) of the compounded sterile product (CSP) preparation process as an alternative to final verification by a pharmacist. METHODS: A 2-phase, single-center noninferiority study was conducted to assess the accuracy and CSP processing time with TATV versus pharmacist verification. Phase I of the study was a validation of the internal pharmacist accuracy rate in which 2 pharmacists checked each CSP. In phase II, prepared CSPs were first checked by a technician and then checked by a pharmacist. Technicians were required to complete baseline credentialing and training requirements to participate in the study. The primary outcome was the error rate for the pharmacist check in phase I and the error rate of the technician check in phase II. Secondary outcomes included total verification time and total dose processing time in each phase. The Farrington-Manning test was used for noninferiority assessment of accuracy, and the Wilcoxon rank sum test was used to detect a difference between the processing times. RESULTS: A total of 4,000 doses were checked in each phase. Pharmacist accuracy was 99.600% in phase I, compared to TATV accuracy of 99.575% in phase II. TATV of CSPs was noninferior to pharmacist verification (absolute difference in accuracy, 0.025%; 95% CI, -0.26% to 0.31%; P = 0.0016). Total verification time and total dose processing times were significantly lower in Phase II. CONCLUSION: This study showed that TATV of CSPs is noninferior to pharmacist final verification and does not negatively impact the time to check CSPs or total CSP processing time.

Implementation of a technician success and onboarding coordinator to reduce technician turnover.

PURPOSE: This article provides an overview of changes implemented at an academic medical center to reduce pharmacy technician turnover. SUMMARY: Pharmacy technician turnover has been a problem for years. Technicians come and go; they move on to other positions, and continuous turnover is an avoidable expense. With greater focus on creating a successful onboarding experience for newly hired technicians, turnover should decrease and satisfaction and engagement should increase. When a newly hired technician leaves a department within the first year, it can have a negative impact on the engagement of the remaining technicians who spent time training new hires in how to complete tasks, mentoring them, and incorporating them into the team. Creating a positive onboarding experience will decrease expenses accrued and minimize wasted resources and staff time dedicated to a technician who will not be around in 6 months to 1 year. At M Health Fairview, a Minneapolis, MN-based health system, technician retention has been improved through a standardized approach to onboarding and orientation, including creation of the new staff role of technician success and onboarding coordinator (TSOC). CONCLUSION: A standard approach to onboarding pharmacy technicians and integrating them into the pharmacy department has proven to be essential to technician retention at M Health Fairview. To get started, it is important to find the right person for the TSOC role to coordinate successful onboarding of newly hired pharmacy technicians. That person should be an individual with passion to engage and inspire newly hired technicians, with several years of experience, and with the ability to cascade knowledge.

Health-system specialty pharmacy: Overview of a hybrid clinical model.

PURPOSE: The prevalence of specialty pharmacies has grown, especially within the hospital setting. These pharmacies have shown benefits in the areas of patient education and adherence, financial support, and patient and provider satisfaction. Currently, there are gaps in literature describing use of a hybrid clinical model in health-system specialty pharmacies. SUMMARY: The UofL Health - UofL Hospital Specialty Pharmacy (UofL Health SP) is attached to a retail pharmacy in a larger health system. Pharmacists in the UofL Health SP utilize a hybrid clinical model in which they split their time between working in a specialty clinic and staffing in the specialty pharmacy. The specialty pharmacy and its oncology satellite pharmacy each have a primary staffing pharmacist, and 5 other pharmacists participate in this hybrid clinical model. In addition to the specialty pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and patient care advocates support the operations of the specialty pharmacy and ensure financial access to medications for patients. CONCLUSION: With the hybrid clinical model at UofL Health SP, there is increased workflow efficiency and better communication between specialty clinics and the specialty pharmacy, which results in a streamlined patient experience. Additionally, there has been an increase in specialty pharmacy prescriptions dispensed in the specialty pharmacy since the implementation of this hybrid clinical model.

Evaluation of technician immunization administration.

OBJECTIVES: To (1) assess technician and supervising pharmacists' attitudes and perceptions toward technicians administering immunizations after a technician training initiative, (2) describe the public health impact of technician-administered COVID-19 immunizations, and (3) describe best practices for technician-administered immunizations. DESIGN: A mixed-methods study collected quantitative and qualitative data. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Kentucky technicians who completed an immunization administration training, and their supervising pharmacists. OUTCOME MEASURES: Surveys were administered to Kentucky technicians who completed immunization administration training between January and September 2021. Surveys assessed the effectiveness of the training, integration of technicians in the immunization workflow, and impact of technicians in their organization's immunization efforts. Similar surveys were deployed to supervising pharmacists. Response frequencies were recorded for each question and descriptive statistics were calculated for each item included in the survey. Key informant interviews were conducted with technicians and pharmacists to further explore study concepts, assess needs, and discuss best practices for implementation. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. RESULTS: Fifty-seven technicians and 37 pharmacists responded to the survey. Technicians were easily integrated into community pharmacy immunization workflow that allowed for increased immunization administration. Ninety-four percent of supervising pharmacists and 98% of technicians supported the use of technicians in the immunization workflow beyond the pandemic. Twenty-seven interviews were conducted. Major themes that emerged from the data included using the "right" technicians, role delineation and collaboration, policies, logistics, financial implications, and public health impact. CONCLUSION: The utilization of pharmacy technicians in administration helped to accelerate the immunization process, alleviate the burden on pharmacists and other health care professionals, and ensure widespread vaccine distribution to combat the pandemic.