Pharmacy Council Licensing Examination

Sample Pharmacy practice questions

Try these 12 questions from different topics. Open "Show answer" to check yourself and read the explanation.

1. Question 1 · Prescription Assessment & Dispensing

   A prescription is unclear and the dose could cause harm if interpreted incorrectly. What should the pharmacist do?

   1. A.Clarify the prescription with the prescriber before dispensing
   2. B.Choose the highest possible dose
   3. C.Ask the patient to guess the intended dose
   4. D.Dispense without documenting the uncertainty
   Show answer

   Answer: A. Clarify the prescription with the prescriber before dispensing

   Good pharmacy practice requires resolving clinically important ambiguities before supply so medicines are dispensed safely and appropriately.

2. Question 2 · Pharmaceutical Care & Patient Counselling

   Which activity best reflects good pharmacy practice?

   1. A.Helping the patient obtain maximum therapeutic benefit from medicines
   2. B.Supplying medicine without checking patient needs
   3. C.Avoiding communication with other health professionals
   4. D.Focusing only on product sales
   Show answer

   Answer: A. Helping the patient obtain maximum therapeutic benefit from medicines

   Joint FIP/WHO guidance places safe, effective, patient-centred medicine use and therapeutic outcomes at the centre of pharmacy practice.

3. Question 3 · Public Health, Pharmacovigilance & Medication Safety

   Which definition best describes pharmacovigilance?

   1. A.Activities for detecting, assessing, understanding and preventing adverse effects or other medicine-related problems
   2. B.Advertising medicines to the public
   3. C.Counting tablets during dispensing only
   4. D.Setting medicine prices
   Show answer

   Answer: A. Activities for detecting, assessing, understanding and preventing adverse effects or other medicine-related problems

   WHO defines pharmacovigilance as the science and activities concerned with detecting, assessing, understanding and preventing adverse effects or other drug-related problems.

4. Question 4 · Principles of Pharmacology & Toxicology

   A patient presents after a potentially dangerous overdose. What is the first clinical priority?

   1. A.Calculate the medicine price
   2. B.Assess and support airway, breathing and circulation while obtaining urgent toxicology help
   3. C.Delay care until every detail is known
   4. D.Induce vomiting routinely
   Show answer

   Answer: B. Assess and support airway, breathing and circulation while obtaining urgent toxicology help

   Initial stabilization of life-threatening problems takes priority, followed by poison-specific assessment and management.

5. Question 5 · Applied Therapeutics & Clinical Decision-Making

   A medicine is mainly eliminated by the kidneys and the patient has severe renal impairment. What should the pharmacist do?

   1. A.Assume kidney function never affects dosing
   2. B.Double every dose automatically
   3. C.Review whether dose or interval adjustment is required using current guidance
   4. D.Stop all medicines without assessment
   Show answer

   Answer: C. Review whether dose or interval adjustment is required using current guidance

   Renal impairment can reduce drug clearance, so dosing and monitoring should be individualized using reliable guidance.

6. Question 6 · Antimicrobial Stewardship

   Which intervention best reflects antimicrobial stewardship?

   1. A.Use broad-spectrum antibiotics for every fever
   2. B.Continue antibiotics without review
   3. C.Ignore culture and susceptibility information
   4. D.Use the most appropriate antimicrobial, dose, route and duration for the documented indication
   Show answer

   Answer: D. Use the most appropriate antimicrobial, dose, route and duration for the documented indication

   Stewardship optimizes antimicrobial selection and use to improve outcomes while limiting avoidable harm and resistance.

7. Question 7 · Dosage Forms & Drug Delivery

   Why should an enteric-coated tablet generally not be crushed?

   1. A.Crushing can destroy the coating and alter where the medicine is released
   2. B.Crushing always makes the dose sterile
   3. C.The coating contains no functional purpose
   4. D.Crushing guarantees slower absorption
   Show answer

   Answer: A. Crushing can destroy the coating and alter where the medicine is released

   Functional coatings can protect a medicine or delay release until the intestine; crushing may change performance and safety.

8. Question 8 · Compounding, Calculations & Dispensing Science

   A child needs 500 mg of a liquid medicine. The product contains 250 mg in 5 mL. What volume provides the prescribed dose?

   1. A.2.5 mL
   2. B.10 mL
   3. C.5 mL
   4. D.25 mL
   Show answer

   Answer: B. 10 mL

   Required volume is 500/250 x 5 = 10 mL.

9. Question 9 · Sterile Products, Packaging & Storage

   Which practice is essential when preparing a sterile product?

   1. A.Prepare beside an open window
   2. B.Touch critical sites with bare hands
   3. C.Use validated aseptic technique in the appropriate controlled environment
   4. D.Reuse single-use components without authorization
   Show answer

   Answer: C. Use validated aseptic technique in the appropriate controlled environment

   Sterile preparation requires controlled conditions, trained personnel and protection of critical sites from contamination.

10. Question 10 · Medicinal & Analytical Chemistry

    Before a finished pharmaceutical product is released, what must quality testing help establish?

    1. A.Only the colour of the outer carton
    2. B.The popularity of the brand
    3. C.The number of advertisements
    4. D.Identity, strength, purity and compliance with specifications
    Show answer

    Answer: D. Identity, strength, purity and compliance with specifications

    Analytical quality control helps demonstrate that materials and products meet approved specifications.

11. Question 11 · Drug Quality, Stability & Analysis

    A medicine has been stored outside its labelled conditions for an unknown period. What is the safest action?

    1. A.Quarantine it and assess stability information before use or supply
    2. B.Change the expiry date
    3. C.Supply it without documentation
    4. D.Mix it with compliant stock
    Show answer

    Answer: A. Quarantine it and assess stability information before use or supply

    Storage excursions may affect quality; affected stock should be segregated and assessed through the quality system.

12. Question 12 · Natural Products & Herbal Medicines

    Why should a pharmacist ask patients specifically about herbal products?

    1. A.Herbal products are always inert
    2. B.They can cause adverse effects or interact with conventional medicines
    3. C.They never need documentation
    4. D.They automatically replace prescribed therapy
    Show answer

    Answer: B. They can cause adverse effects or interact with conventional medicines

    A complete medication history includes traditional and herbal products because they may affect safety and treatment outcomes.