**This guideline is for best study tools necessary to pass the PTCE board exam ==without purchasing anything== to become a Certified Pharmacy Technician in 2025.** - $129 to take - 90 Multiple-Choice Questions - 2 Hours Timed **ExCPT & PTCE Support:** _The study materials are sufficient study prep for both NHA's ExCPT and PTCB's PTCE board exams._ ✔️[Apply for the PTCE Exam](https://myaccount.ptcb.org/widget/?cobaltsrc=https://portal.ptcb.org/Login.aspx?ReturnUrl=/Authentication/SAML2IDP/Orases/SingleSignonService.ashx) # 9 Mock Exams 810 relevant PTCE questions: - [3 PTCB Official Practice Tests](https://www.ptcbpracticetest.com/) - [500 Question Bank, 90 Question Practice Test](https://www.pharmacy-tech-test.com/ptcb-practice-exam.htmlb,) - [Online PTCB Resources](https://www.ascenciatestprep.com/ptcb-online-resources) - [3 PTCE Practice Exams](https://www.meded101.com/ptcb-free-practice-test/?utm_source=perplexity) - [1 PTCE Practice Exam with Feedback](https://pharmacytechscholar.com/ptcb-practice-test/?utm_source=perplexity) # 2 Quizlet Sets PTCE topics, law, terms, SIGs, and more. A combined total of 750+ topics: - [200+ PTCB Exam Questions](https://quizlet.com/21301255/ptcb-exam-questions-flash-cards/?x=1jqU&i=4z56uo) - [550+ PTCB Study Set](https://quizlet.com/285175403/ptcb-flash-cards/?x=1jqU&i=4z56uo) # WhatsApp Study Group Share questions, study tricks, and prepare together in our [WhatsApp Group here](https://chat.whatsapp.com/KF7rJkdp2NVCtZIwyXcujo?mode=wwc). # 2026 PTCB Knowledge Reference ==The PTCB releases a guideline for reviewing for the exam each year==. You can find the PDF copy of the [2026 guide here.](https://ptcb.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/cpht-knowledge-reference.pdf). ## Medications - Generic names, brand names, and classifications of medications - Therapeutic duplications - Common or life-threatening drug interactions and contraindications (e.g., drug-drug, drug-dietary supplement, drug-laboratory, drug-nutrient, drugdisease) - Strengths/doses, dosage forms, routes of administration, special handling and administration instructions, and duration of drug therapy - Common or severe medication side effects, adverse effects, and allergies - Indications of medications - Drug stability (e.g., oral suspensions, insulins, reconstitutables, injectables, vaccinations) - Proper storage of medications (e.g., temperature ranges, light sensitivity, restricted access) ## Federal Requirements - Federal requirements for storage, handling, and disposal of non-hazardous, hazardous (e.g., P-list), and pharmacological substances and wastes - Federal requirements for controlled substance prescriptions (i.e., new, refill, transfer) and DEA controlled substance schedules - Federal requirements for receiving, storing, ordering, labeling, dispensing, returning, take-back programs for, loss or theft of, and destroying controlled substances. - Federal restricted drug programs and related medication-processing requirements (e.g., pseudoephedrine, Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies [REMS]) - FDA requirements for medication recalls - FDA product serialization, tracking, tracing, handling, and quarantining requirements (i.e., Drug Supply Chain Security Act [DSCSA]) ## State Requirements & Practice Standards - State requirements for licensure, registration, and/or certification of pharmacy technicians - State requirements regarding the roles and responsibilities of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and other pharmacy employees - State requirements regarding facilities, equipment, and supplies (e.g., space requirements, prescription file storage, cleanliness, reference materials) - State requirements for accessibility of medications (i.e., Rx, OTC, behind the counter) - State requirements for storage, handling, and disposal of non-hazardous, hazardous, and pharmacological substances and wastes (e.g., Safety Data Sheet [SDS], sharps containers, receptacle types) - State schedule classifications for controlled substances - State requirements for receiving, storing, ordering, refilling, labeling, dispensing, returning, take-back programs, loss or theft of, and destroying controlled substances - State requirements for controlled substance prescription transfer - State requirements for record keeping, documentation, and record retention (e.g., length of time that controlled substances and records are maintained on file) ## Patient Safety & Quality Assurance - High-alert/risk medications and look-alike/soundalike [LASA] medications - 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) - Issues that require pharmacist intervention (e.g., drug utilization review [DUR], adverse drug event [ADE], OTC recommendation, therapeutic substitution, misuse, adherence, post-immunization delivery care, allergies, drug interactions) - Event reporting procedures (e.g., medication errors, adverse effects, product integrity, MedWatch, VAERS, near miss, root-cause analysis [RCA], continuous quality improvement [CQI]) - Types of prescription errors (e.g., incorrect dose, quantity, patient, drug, route of administration) - Infection prevention procedures and cleaning standards (e.g., handwashing, personal protective equipment [PPE], cleaning counting trays, countertops, and equipment ## Order Entry & Processing - Formulas, calculations, ratios, proportions, 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 - Equipment and supplies required for drug administration (e.g., diabetic supplies, inhaler spacers, oral syringes, injectable syringes, filters, dilution solutions, immunization supplies, nebulizers) - Lot numbers, expiration dates, and National Drug Code (NDC) numbers - Procedures for identifying and returning dispensable, non-dispensable, and expired medications and supplies (e.g., credit return, return to stock, reverse distribution ## Inventory Management - Procedures to address improperly stored inventory (e.g., temperature and/or humidity excusrions) - Formulary or approved/preferred product list • Suitable alternatives to ordering (e.g., transferring or borrowing medications from another pharmacy) - Medication quality control system requirements (e.g., automated dispensing systems, bar coding, clinic and nursing floor stock, crash carts, emergency kits) - Procedures for ordering medications and supplies - Inventory control practices and record keeping (e.g., par and reorder levels, turnover rates, drug usage patterns, and perpetual inventory) - Procedures to perform physical inventories (e.g., annual, controlled substance ## Administrative & Management - Administrative duties and procedures for pharmacies (e.g., managing files and records, transcription, and other procedures and terminology) - Purpose and proper use of pharmacy reports (e.g., inventory reports, diversion reports, discrepancy reports, override reports, usage reports, input accuracy reports, business summary reports) - Process for handling and destroying confidential/classified information - Role of pharmacy technicians, pharmacists, and other occupations in healthcare ## Health & Wellness - Devices used for monitoring and/or screening (e.g., automatic blood pressure monitors, glucose monitors, test strips/lancets, point-of-care tests) - Strategies for assessing patient’s adherence to prescriptions/medication orders (e.g., patterns of early/late refills, medication therapy management [MTM]) - Basic knowledge of anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology relevant to pharmacy technicians - Signs and symptoms of a health emergency # PTCE Study Book  ==Optional $50 study book== featuring practice topics that cover: - Quick review of the concepts covered on the PTCE exam - 4 practice tests with detailed answer explanations - Tips and tricks from experienced pharmacists - Access to online flash cards, cheat sheets, and more If you think you'd find this extra helpful, can find the [print on Amazon here.](https://a.co/d/hAoLvQP)