Medicine Counter Assistant Course (Interact)

Questions for this course

The student we initially enrolled on Interact has now left our pharmacy, can we transfer the course to another member of staff?

Yes, but only if the student initially enrolled has not completed the Part A assessment.

If the student has not attempted the Part A assessment, we can transfer the course over to another member of staff as long as it is done within 3 months of the original enrolment.

If you require replacement material e.g. workbooks, student guide, supervising pharmacist’s guide etc, please contact the Professional Development department to request the items. There will be an administration fee to complete the transfer and a charge for replacement material. Charges will be explained by a member of the Professional Development department when the transfer is requested

We don't sell any veterinary medicines; do I have to complete Chapter 10 on veterinary medicines?

Yes.

Interact is a GPhC accredited course and learning about veterinary medicines forms part of the GPhC syllabus to work on the medicines counter. You are required to know about veterinary medicines because you may sell them in another pharmacy, even if you are currently working in a pharmacy that does not deal with them.

Remember, the Part A and B assessments are open book assessments. This means you can refer to your workbooks to help you answer the questions.

What happens if I fail the Part A/B assessment?

Do not lose hope!

If you do not achieve the pass mark on your first attempt at the assessment paper, you will have 2 more attempts to achieve the pass mark of 80%.

After a total of 3 attempts at either the Part A or B assessment paper, you will be discontinued from the course. This is because a condition of the GPhC accreditation is that all students are given a maximum of 3 attempts on each assessment.

If you fail two attempts, before a third and final assessment is sent to your supervising pharmacist, we will contact your supervising pharmacist to discuss any problems you may be having on the course and to see if we can provide any further support to help you.
Remember, the Part A and B assessments are open book assessments, this means you can refer to your workbooks to help you answer the questions.

 

What is the pass mark for the Part A/B assessment?

80%.

You must achieve 80% on the Part A assessment before moving onto Part B of the course and subsequently achieve 80% on the Part B assessment to receive a certificate of completion for the Interact course.

If you do not achieve the pass mark on your first attempt at the assessment paper, you will have 2 more attempts. After a total of 3 attempts at either the Part A or B assessment paper, you will be discontinued from the course. This is because a condition of the GPhC accreditation is that all students are given a maximum of 3 attempts on each assessment. If you fail two attempts, before a third and final assessment is sent to your supervising pharmacist, we will contact your supervising pharmacist to discuss any problems you may be having on the course and to see if we can provide any further support to help you.

Remember, the Part A and B assessments are open book assessments, which means you can refer to your workbooks to help you answer the questions.

How long do I have to complete the Part A/B assessment?

60 minutes*

You have a total of 60 minutes to complete the assessment. This includes reading the questions, checking any you are unsure about in your workbooks and marking your answers on the answer grid found on the back of the letter sent with the question paper.

* If a student requires reasonable adjustments, the supervising pharmacist can contact the Professional Development department for guidance and support on how to complete the course and assessments.

If you are enrolled on the online Interact course, the time allocation remains 60 minutes, with a timer in the top right-hand corner. Each page will have 10 questions on it and you must select an answer for all 10 questions before you will be allowed to move onto the next set of questions. There are a total of 50 questions, so there will be 5 pages to complete the assessment. Make sure you leave yourself enough time answer all the questions. If you have time remaining, you can go back to a previous page and review/change your answer(s). If you do this, make sure you press the ‘Submit’ button to ensure your updated answer is saved to the system. You will be able to open a PDF version of the course material to refer to if you need to check information in the modules to answer the assessment questions.

When do I request the Part A and/or B assessment paper from my supervising pharmacist?

You must complete the inter-text activities and end of chapter multiple choice questions in the Part A workbook before attempting the Part A assessment. Once you have successfully completed the Part A assessment (achieve 80% or above) you can proceed to work through chapters 6 to 10, including the end of chapter multiple choice questions and attempt the Part B assessment.

You cannot ask your supervising pharmacist for Part A and Part B assessments together.

What is the pass mark for the end of chapter MCQs?

80%

These should be marked by your supervising pharmacist, who will have the answers to these questions in their supervising pharmacist’s guide. If 80% or above on the end of chapter MCQs is not achieved, the relevant chapter(s) should be re-read and the questions attempted again.

What happens if I do not get 80% or above on my end of chapter MCQs?

The relevant chapter(s) should be re-read and the questions attempted again. These MCQs are a learning exercise and help both you and your supervising pharmacist evaluate when you are ready to attempt the summative Part A or B assessment paper.

These should be marked by your supervising pharmacist, who will have the answers to these questions in their supervising pharmacist’s guide.

Do I need to submit the end of chapter MCQ answers for marking by the NPA?

No.

These should be marked by your supervising pharmacist, who will have the answers to these questions in the supervising pharmacist’s guide.

If 80% or above on the end of chapter MCQs is not achieved, the relevant chapter(s) should be re-read and the questions attempted again.

I thought that my workbooks are not assessed, so why have you asked to see my Interact workbooks?

This forms part of our quality assurance process.

As a condition of our accreditation with the GPhC, we are required to quality assure all our courses. This includes making sure that all students are completing the course to the same level and that students are being assessed fairly.

We request your Interact workbooks, to check that you have completed all the inter-text activities and the end of the chapter MCQs before attempting the Part A and Part B assessment papers.

Why does my supervising pharmacist have to authorise the assessment?

This is to ensure they are happy that the student is ready to sit the assessment paper. As you have a maximum of 3 attempts at the assessment, we do not want you to rush into it.

How can I request the assessment?

Only the supervising pharmacist can provide you with the assessment paper.

This is to ensure they are happy that the student is ready to sit the assessment paper. As you have a maximum of 3 attempts at the assessment, we do not want you to rush into it.

You will need to request the assessment for Part A and B from your supervising pharmacist. Only they can authorise you to sit the assessment. You can only do this once you have completed Parts A and B of the course respectively. Note, the Part B assessment is not included in the pack. This is to ensure the Part B assessment is not completed before the Part A assessment. Once you are ready to undertake the Part B assessment, your supervising pharmacist will need to request the Part B assessment by contacting the Professional Development department.

How much study time should I be provided by my employer to complete this course?

We do not stipulate a minimum amount of study time your employer must give you to complete this course. This is to allow flexibility to fit the course around the needs of the pharmacy.

The course is to be completed at your own pace. However, it may be to your own and your employer’s best interests if you complete it within a reasonable time to allow you to work competently on the pharmacy counter.

On average each chapter should take you approximately five hours to read and complete. However, this does not take into account that some chapters are bigger that others or different learning styles and pace. It also does not include the time we would expect you to spend on the medicines counter reading about the products and learning from your colleagues or speaking to customers.
We suggest that you break down the time you spend on your course in your working week, for example, 30 minutes to 1 hour per day, three or four times a week. Allocation of study time must be decided between yourself and your supervising pharmacist, taking into consideration the needs of the pharmacy, your working hours and your supervising pharmacist’s working hours.

The course should be completed within 6-12 months of enrolment.

How long am I meant to spend on each module?

This course is to be completed at your own pace, however it may be to your own and your employer’s best interest if you complete it within a reasonable time to allow you to work competently on the pharmacy counter.

The course should be completed within 6 to 12 months of enrolment.

How long do I have to complete the course?

6 to 12 months.

If you require an extension, your supervising pharmacist will need to contact the Professional Development to discuss your particular circumstances and/or request an extension.

What happens if I fail an assessment?

If you fail an assessment, you have two further attempts at passing it, after which, you can no longer continue on the course. If you have failed two attempts, the course lead will contact you and assess how best we can support you.

Is this an accredited course?

Yes.

The NPA Pharmacy Interact Course is accredited by the GPhC, and meets the training requirements for Medicines Counter Assistants.

You cannot work on the medicines counter without this minimum level of training and it is your employer’s professional responsibility to enrol you onto this course within 3 months of starting work in their pharmacy if you have not completed any previous GPhC accredited medicines counter assistant training.

Is there a minimum age to enrol on this course?

Yes.

You must  be 16 or over to be enrolled onto this course.

Do I have to have any previous qualification to be enrolled onto this course?

No.

This course is suitable for all Medicine Counter Assistants, full or part time, Saturday and evening staff over the age of 16.