Marine veteran translates military experience into a career through Blinn College's Pharmacy Technician Program

Program's flexible scheduling offers perfect fit for Blinn College alumna Emmie Eisenhauer

April 27, 2018

After more than a decade as a stay-at-home mother, Marine veteran Emmie Eisenhauer was ready to embark on a new career path.

Prior to caring for her children, Eisenhauer served four years as an aircraft rescue and firefighting specialist in the U.S. Marine Corps. As her children got older, she decided to translate her military medical experience into a career with the help of Blinn College’s Pharmacy Technician Program.

In summer 2016, Eisenhauer enrolled in the three-month program at Blinn, attending classes three days a week for four hours per day. The flexible scheduling offered a perfect fit for the active mother of three.

“I really enjoyed my time as a firefighter and emergency medical technician in the military,” she said. “I wanted to continue with a career in the medical field and still maintain my life outside of school. Blinn’s Pharmacy Technician Program allowed me to fill those needs.”

Blinn’s Division of Technical & Community Education offers day, night, and online course options for its 160-hour Pharmacy Technician Program. The program consists of three courses, and includes instruction in pharmacology, pharmacy law and regulations, sterile and non-sterile compounding, medication safety, quality assurance, medication order entry and fill processes, inventory management, billing, and information systems. Students who complete the program will be prepared to take the national Pharmacy Technician Certification Exam.

The course curriculum is designed and implemented based on nationally recognized training, assessment, and certification standards set forth by the American Pharmaceutical Association. Courses are taught by faculty comprised of licensed pharmacists and healthcare professionals whose classes are structured to promote quality student-instructor interaction.

“I intersperse coursework with anecdotes from my own experiences to better illustrate to my students what scenarios they might encounter on the job,” Pharmacy Technician Instructor Joe Burns said. “We want to prepare them to become more than just certified on paper; we want our students to become knowledgeable pharmacy technicians in the workforce.”

Pharmacy technicians work under the direction of a licensed pharmacist and perform technical and clerical duties in the pharmacy. Pharmacy technicians measure, mix, count out, label, and record medication dosages according to prescription orders. Job opportunities abound in hospitals, pharmaceutical laboratories, mail order pharmacies, and pharmacies in retail settings.

“My favorite part of being a pharmacy technician is interacting with patients,” said Eisenhauer, who works at Brookshire Brothers Pharmacy in Bryan. “We do the best we can to make them feel better.”

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of pharmacy technicians is expected to grow 12 percent in Texas between 2016 and 2026. Pharmacy technicians average a median wage of $15.26 per hour, or approximately $31,750 per year.

Blinn will offer a new online course section of its Pharmacy Technician Program beginning Monday, May 7. The course will run through Monday, July 30, and costs $1,450.

Blinn also will offer Facilities Maintenance Pre-Apprenticeship Training, Plumbing Pre-Apprenticeship Training, Certified Nurse Aid, Certified Medication Aide Refresher, and Electrician License Renewal courses in May.

Blinn’s technical and community education courses are designed to provide students the knowledge and ability they need to enter the workforce immediately after completion of the courses. Many of these courses do not require a high school diploma and enrollment is fast and easy. As most of these courses are non-credit, students do not need to go through the College’s admissions process to enroll. Programs vary in length and are offered with daytime, evening, and weekend options.

Business owners can enroll their employees in Blinn Technical & Community Education courses using Texas Workforce Commission Skills Development and Skills for Small Business funds, and Blinn staff can help businesses complete the request form. Blinn also offers students access to scholarships through the Blinn College Foundation, private grants, and Workforce Solutions.

For more information or to register for these courses, visit the Blinn Post Office Campus at 301 Post Office Street in Bryan. For additional information, visit www.blinn.edu/workforce or call 979-209-7205.