PA MPJE key terms

The licensing and disciplinary body within the Department of State's Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs that regulates pharmacists, pharmacy interns, pharmacy locations and related personnel under the Commonwealth's Pharmacy Act.

Pennsylvania's statute governing who may practice pharmacy, how pharmacy locations are permitted, and what conduct is prohibited. The Board of Pharmacy's rulemaking, licensing and enforcement authority derives from it.

The Commonwealth's controlled substance statute, modeled on the federal Controlled Substances Act. It establishes schedules, registration duties, prescribing and dispensing limits, and criminal penalties for drug law violations in Pennsylvania.

A federal registration issued by the Drug Enforcement Administration that permits a practitioner or pharmacy to handle controlled substances. It is location-specific, must be renewed periodically, and can be surrendered or revoked.

The set of activities a licensee is legally allowed to perform, as defined by statute, Board regulation, and any additional training or certification the law requires for a specific task.

The Board-issued authorization for a specific physical location to store and dispense drugs. It identifies the pharmacist-in-charge, is not freely transferable, and must be renewed and displayed.

A pathway by which a pharmacist licensed in another jurisdiction obtains a Pennsylvania license without repeating the full examination, typically by requesting that examination scores be transferred and verifying the existing license.

A Board-issued credential letting a student enrolled in an accredited pharmacy program gain practical experience. Interns may perform pharmacist-type tasks only while supervised by a licensed pharmacist.

Support personnel who perform non-clinical duties such as data entry, counting, labeling and stock management under pharmacist supervision, subject to state limits on which tasks may be delegated.

A Pennsylvania registration required of a pharmacy located outside the Commonwealth that ships, mails or delivers prescription drugs to Pennsylvania patients, obliging it to follow Pennsylvania dispensing and labeling rules.

Education hours a licensee must complete during each renewal cycle, including any topics the Board specifically mandates, with documentation retained and subject to audit at renewal.

The pharmacist named on a pharmacy's permit as accountable for day-to-day compliance with pharmacy and drug laws, including recordkeeping, security, staffing, and supervision of all pharmacy personnel.

The pharmacist's duty to oversee, verify and take responsibility for work performed by interns, technicians and clerks, ensuring delegated tasks are legally permitted and that the pharmacist checks the finished prescription.

The obligation to keep prescription, purchasing, inventory and dispensing records at the licensed location for the period set by Board rule, and for controlled substances at least the two years federal law requires.

A lawful written, electronic or verbal order from an authorized prescriber that identifies the patient, drug, strength, directions, quantity, refills and prescriber, giving the pharmacist authority to dispense.

The printed information affixed to a dispensed container, including the pharmacy's identity, prescription number, date, patient and prescriber names, drug name and strength, directions, quantity and required warnings.

A prescription communicated by telephone or other verbal means that the pharmacist reduces to a written record. Its use is restricted for certain controlled substances and is always subject to verification of the prescriber.

Moving prescription information from one pharmacy to another at the patient's request so refills can continue; the original pharmacy records the transfer and may not dispense further refills unless the prescription is transferred back.

A repeat dispensing of the same drug under an existing prescription. Refills are limited by the prescriber's directions, by any expiration period set in state law, and for controlled substances by schedule restrictions.

Dispensing a therapeutically equivalent product in place of the prescribed brand-name drug. It is permitted unless the prescriber indicates that no substitution should be made, and the patient is usually informed of the change.

A prescription transmitted digitally from prescriber to pharmacy, subject to federal and state rules on data content, electronic signature, recordkeeping, and the circumstances in which paper or oral orders remain allowed.

Pennsylvania's electronic database of dispensed controlled substances. Dispensers submit dispensing data, and prescribers and pharmacists query it to review a patient's history and spot unsafe patterns.

Rules for the most tightly restricted drugs: a written or qualifying electronic order, no refills allowed, and quantity limits that require a new prescription for continued therapy beyond the permitted supply.

The order form, or its electronic equivalent, used to transfer Schedule I and II drugs between registrants. Each line must be completed, and executed forms are retained as required records.

A complete, dated count of all controlled substances on hand, performed at least every two years, signed by the responsible person, and kept with controlled substance records at the registered location.

The duty to notify the DEA, typically on Form 106, and state authorities when controlled substances are stolen or noticeably missing, plus keeping documentation of the circumstances and the resulting investigation.

A written arrangement between a pharmacist and a prescriber allowing the pharmacist to manage drug therapy for defined patients, such as continuing or adjusting medications, under stated conditions and communication requirements.

Pharmacist-delivered review of a patient's full medication regimen to find drug-related problems, improve adherence and safety, and recommend changes to the prescriber, with the encounter documented.

A pharmacist's legal ability to administer vaccines when state law and Board rules allow it, typically requiring certification, a protocol or prescription, compliance with age limits, and reporting to the state immunization registry.

A prescriber-signed statewide order that lets pharmacists dispense naloxone to persons at risk of opioid overdose without an individual prescription, with required education given to the recipient at dispensing.

Preparing a medication tailored to an individual patient's needs from approved ingredients and components. It is permitted for eligible pharmacies but may not amount to routine copying of commercially available products.

The national standards chapter for sterile compounding. It addresses facility design, environmental monitoring, personnel training and process validation for preparations that must remain free of microbial contamination.

The date after which a compounded or repackaged preparation must not be used. It is assigned from stability references and applicable standards and is never later than the original product's expiration date.

The pharmacist's discussion with the patient when a prescription is dispensed, covering proper use, common adverse effects, storage and missed doses. It is offered privately and documented when the law requires.

The pharmacist's screening of a new prescription against the patient's profile before dispensing, checking for interactions, therapeutic duplication, dosing errors, allergies and other contraindications that require intervention.

A preventable event that may cause or lead to inappropriate medication use or patient harm, such as the wrong drug, dose, patient, route or time, including near misses caught before the drug reaches the patient.

An institutional system in which each dose is packaged and dispensed individually for a specific patient for a defined period, improving accountability and reducing preparation and administration errors.

A pharmacist who reviews the medication regimen of residents in a long-term care facility, typically at least monthly, and reports irregularities to the attending physician and nursing staff.

A computer-controlled cabinet or device that stores and releases medications at or near the point of care, requiring restricted access profiles, security safeguards, and periodic accuracy and inventory checks.

Bulk supplies of selected drugs kept in patient care areas for administration before an individual prescription is processed, limited to an approved list and controlled through documentation and reconciliation.