Basic Math Skills Required for Pharmacy Technicians
One of the factors that not everyone who’s thinking about becoming a pharmacy technician considers is the need to know some essential mathematical formulas. Math in pharmacy is vital for dosage preparation and for compounding services. Pharmacy math is also important for passing the PTCE.
For one thing, you must understand measurements. You may need to use a variety of units to prepare medications, so you must be comfortable working with milligrams (mg), grams (g), milliliters (mL), and liters (L). Medications are measured by mass, with the most commonly used units being milligrams and grams. One thousand milligrams is one gram.
Math in pharmacy also requires that you understand volume. Some medications are measured in milliliters and liters, so knowing how to measure these is vital.
One of the challenges that you may face as a pharmacy technician is converting one unit of measurement into another. Pharmacy technicians may be asked to compound topical products, such as mixing a powder into an ointment to make a paste. Pastes usually contain 25% solids.
If you need to convert between metric and imperial units, you will need to multiply the former by the conversion factor unique to the unit. For example, 1 kilogram (metric) is 2.2046 pounds (imperial), so if you need to go from kilograms to pounds, you multiply the number of kilograms by 2.20462.
To be able to perform all of your tasks as a pharmacy technician, you will need to master basic arithmetic. Adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing will be skills you use every day, so brushing up on them makes a difference.
Essential Formulas for Medication Calculations
Perhaps the most essential type of math in pharmacy that you will need to master is how to calculate dosages. Patients depend on you getting the right number to stay safe and benefit from their prescribed medications.
Any deviation can result in them not receiving the treatment they need to address medical conditions while also putting them at risk of overdoses or dangerous drug interactions.
Dosage Calculations
There is a universal formula called the “desired over have method.” The desired dosage is represented as D, while the amount available is H. The formula also considers Q, which is the form and amount in which the drug is supplied, such as tablets or liquids. To calculate the dose, the formula is:
D / H x Q = X
The X represents the amount that the patient will actually receive. For example, if a prescription asks for 750 mg P.O. (taken orally) every 12 hours, but the pharmacy stock offers pills in 250 mg, you will need to calculate how many tablets per dose to offer. The formula would be: 750 mg/250 mg x 1 tablet = 3 tablets per dose.
Concentration and Dilution
Diluting a medication changes its strength. It may be necessary to do this to meet a patient’s specific dosage needs. To be able to perform these calculations, you need a good grasp of units of measurement and how they relate to each other.
The formula for managing concentration and dilution scenarios is:
C1 x V1 = C2 x V2
C1 represents the original concentration of the drug, while V1 is the original volume of the drug. C2 is the new concentration, and V2 is the new volume.
Infusion Rates
Math in pharmacy is also necessary for calculating drip rates and infusion times. This is essential for IV medications. You must know at what rate the medication will be delivered to the patient.
Most of the time, the flow rate will be written as mL/hr, or milliliters per hour. When determining the rate, you’ll need to take the total volume in mL and divide that by the total number of hours over which the medication has to be infused. That will give you the mL per hour.
Flow Rate (mL per hour) = Total Volume / Hours
There may be additional factors to address in the calculation, including the type of IV tubing you’re using and the drop factor. The drop factor will impact the drip rate.
To calculate the drip rate, you need to take the total volume in mL and divide it by time (in minutes). You then multiply it by the drop factor (in gtt/mL). This will give you the drip rate in gtt/minute.
How Pharmacy Technicians Use Math for Compounding Medications
Math in pharmacy is essential for offering compounding services. Compounding medications are customized medicines. Preparing them involves combining or changing ingredients to meet the person’s unique needs. Pharmacy technicians use math to calculate the ratios of various ingredients and to adjust dosages safely.
Compounding often involves IV solutions, which require having a good grasp of drip and infusion rates, depending on the various medications. You may also need to change the concentration of an existing solution, so the diluting formula is important.
In instances when you have to prepare topical medications, there will be further factors to keep in mind. One of these is ensuring that the solutions are isotonic so that they don’t damage tissue.
How Does RxCe Support Pharmacy Techs?
Pharmacy technicians are crucial for the effective functioning of a pharmacy. As with other healthcare professionals, being able to work as a pharmacy tech requires maintaining your credentials. To do so, you’ll have to keep up with continuing education.
At RxCe, we offer courses that can fulfill the requirements you must meet to obtain and maintain your license. You can choose from a variety of options at some of the best rates in the industry. Contact us to learn more about the options we offer pharmacy technicians.
