Isaac Said:

I am looking to start a career as either a pharmacy technician,phlabotamist,or in radiology...?

We Answered:

pharmacy tech - has two main areas of employment. one is your normal hospital route and the other is the retail sector. in the hospital you can expect to make things like ointments, preparing the medications the nurses administer to the patients, preparing the IV bags and basically being the "alchemist" of the group. no real interaction with patients. you more or less will work in an office or lab mixing solutions and preparing medication. the retail end is your Walgreens, Target, Walmart pharmacys. here you'll intereact daily with customers on medication questions, general health questions etc. you will be the one sorting out the prescriptions and putting them into the bottles. every once in awhile you'll actually make some of the medicine and package it accordingly. retail will be hourly and hospital will be salaried. best to get into the hospital since if you desire to further your career and possibly become and pahrmacist, some places will actually pay for you to go back to school to do so. ironically once you do become a pharmacist, you'll most likely wind up working at a walgreens or target pharmacy. most pharmacy tech programs will last about 1 1/2 to 2 years. i believe you get an associates for this one.

phlebotomist - will mainly run routine tracheal tests as well as administer any medications needed to treat any sort of throat infection. schooling for this is quite more extensive than a PT or radiology, but the salary for this position can start around the mid to high 30's depending on where you work. again, hospital is the best route and not a private clinic. usually the schooling for this is around 2-3 years whether it be post secondary or from a community colege.

radiology/xray tech - main function is to maintain and repair any necessary maintenance to the actual xray machine. keep in mind radiology and radilogy tech are two different things. the first will require extensive medical training which can last up to 4 years whereas the radiology tech can be done in as little as 2 years. their main function is to support the radiologist and help perform some rudimentary xrays as well getting the film developed and again, maintaining the equpiment. this one should be hourly again, usually around 10-12/hour to start. keep in mind this is more tech than medical. there is some medical knowledge involved but this is more fixing machines and such. some like it, others don't minimal interaction with patients.


best places to start looking are at your community colleges or post secondary schools. I used to work as an admissions rep for one of these schools which is why MY answer is so damn long. the education you get from post secondary schools are mediocre at best since all of these schools are FOR PROFIT. they don't care about your career, they just want you to sign up and bring the money with you etc. they are good for a quick and easy out. most places like these can get you done in about 2 years max. price is comparable to any other normal school but quickness comes at a price. these classes will be an all day affair so hope you live with a family member or somthing cuz you won't have anytime for a job. the community college route is more in depth but expensive as well. you will get more training but also more book reading than actual hands on. post secondary schools specialize in hands on training since that;s the way most people learn anyways.

PS if I don't get the best answer for this question i will NEVER help you out in the future again.