Pharmacists look for more control

From the Sudbury (Ont.) Star:
It's a scenario that has happened to many people.

You forgot your prescription was running low, there are no more refills allowed and a two-week wait to see the doctor to get it renewed just won't do.

So, you end up going to the emergency department to get the prescription renewed, tying up valuable time and making others wait for something that should have taken just a few minutes to address.

If Ken Burns and the other 7,300 members of the Ontario Pharmacists Association get their wish, that scenario will come to an end.

That's because pharmacists may soon be able to take care of simple renewals for things such as high blood pressure pills and migraine medication after being granted the authority to do so by the province.

"There are a lot of people being treated for things such as high blood pressure," said Burns, pharmacist/manager at Errington Pharmacy in Chelmsford. "They may be monitored on a medication for seven years. We have a written record of the patient and the doctor here. Does it make sense to have to make them go back to a physician (for a renewal) or sitting in an emergency department in a line and then meeting a doctor who doesn't have any information about them?" ...more