This review by the American Pharmacy Association (APhA) is organized to correspond directly to the National Pharmacy Technician Certification Examination's Content Outline. The Content Outline, revised in March 2000, is based on a US national study of tasks pharmacy technicians perform in a variety of practice settings. So APhA's review is both a thorough primer on the many specific activities that pharmacy technicians actually perform and a detailed review of the knowledge that test candidates must master to pass the Pharmacy Technician Certification Examination. Fifteen concise yet detailed chapters are organized in four sections: basic information; prescription dispensing; maintaining medications and inventory control systems; and assisting with pharmacy administration and management. The latter three sections correspond to the three broad function areas found in the Pharmacy Technician Certification Examination Revised Content Outline.