Pharmacy Technician Education & Training in Pharmacogenomics

Service improvement project by NHS North East & Yorkshire Genomic Medicine Service Pharmacy Team.AimThe aim of this service improvement project is to assess the current pharmacogenomics training and education needs of the pharmacy technician workforce.Objectives· Establish current levels of pharmacogenomics knowledge· Establish current levels of confidence in relation to pharmacogenomics· Identify perceived barriers to developing pharmacogenomics knowledge and confidence· Identify training and education preferencesMethodA cross-sectional survey was conducted between 1st May to 30th June 2025.A questionnaire was created in the web-based application Microsoft Forms and disseminated via North East and Yorkshire’s Chief Pharmacy Technician network, NHS England Workforce Training and Education teams, NHS Genomic Service Alliances’ Pharmacy Leads, Pharmacy Technician training providers, the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer’s Pharmacy Technician Professional Advisory Forum, and via social media with the assistance of Community Pharmacy England. The survey was open to Pre-Registration Trainee Pharmacy Technicians and Pharmacy Technicians practicing in the UK. 24 survey questions included demographic information, Likert-scale questions and open-ended questions. Questions were piloted by 5 pharmacists and 2 pharmacy technicians. Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics, while qualitative data from free text responses were thematically analysed.This survey was registered on Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals Foundation Trust's clinical effectiveness register (ID number 17384).