Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Pharmacists struggling to deal with prescription drug fraud in B.C.: study

From CBC.ca:
B.C.'s pharmacists are not prepared to detect or deal with prescription drug fraud, according to a new study conducted by the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford.

The study found that even if there's something obviously wrong with a prescription slip, many pharmacists are worried about what would happen if they confronted a patient, according to co-author Dr. Irwin Cohen, the research director of the university's centre for social responsibility.

"It is a very personal individual decision when someone comes with a fraudulent prescription or if someone comes with clear signs of abuse," said Cohen.

"It's certainly not pandemic yet," Cohen added. "But pharmacists are telling us they are ill equipped to deal with the problem. We also can't discount the fact that some people are using fraudulent prescriptions to obtain powerful and dangerous medications to sell for profit." ...more

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