From the Sackville (NB) Tribune Post:
Local residents can now have their prescriptions refilled easier, thanks to changes that went into effect recently under the New Brunswick Pharmacy Act.
George Murray, a pharmacist at Tantramar Pharmacy, is one of the province's first accredited pharmacists permitted to alter or refill prescriptions, administer vaccines and prescribe medications in an emergency.
Murray took a two-day training session in Moncton before applying for his licence.
"The first day was an injection how-to and there was a 15-hour online course as well that had to be completed before the hands-on training."
Murray also did CPR training.
Accredited pharmacists can now administer most types of vaccines, including those for H1N1 and seasonal flu, Murray said.
"The timing was good with the H1N1 outbreak. More people are scrambling for people who have the ability to provide immunization." ...more
Showing posts with label pharmacist prescribing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pharmacist prescribing. Show all posts
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Pharmacy frustration
From the St. John's (NL) Telegram:
It's happened to Burin Peninsula resident Madeline Broydell and many others with chronic illnesses.
Here's how it usually plays out. Broydell is low on the medications she uses to control her diabetes and high blood pressure, but her doctor is out of town and is unavailable to write her a new prescription.
She pays a visit to Doug Stanley, a pharmacist at Burin Pharmacy, who's been filling her prescriptions for many years and knows her medical background almost as well as her doctor.
But Stanley throws up his hands. Without a written prescription from a medical doctor, he can't help Broydell.
He tells her to visit the emergency department at the local hospital in order to get a written prescription, a process that could take many hours and forces her to expose herself to an environment filled with sick, possibly contagious patients.
"It's very frustrating," Broydell said Friday from her home in Burin Bay Arm. "I've ran into this problem a couple of times. ...more
It's happened to Burin Peninsula resident Madeline Broydell and many others with chronic illnesses.
Here's how it usually plays out. Broydell is low on the medications she uses to control her diabetes and high blood pressure, but her doctor is out of town and is unavailable to write her a new prescription.
She pays a visit to Doug Stanley, a pharmacist at Burin Pharmacy, who's been filling her prescriptions for many years and knows her medical background almost as well as her doctor.
But Stanley throws up his hands. Without a written prescription from a medical doctor, he can't help Broydell.
He tells her to visit the emergency department at the local hospital in order to get a written prescription, a process that could take many hours and forces her to expose herself to an environment filled with sick, possibly contagious patients.
"It's very frustrating," Broydell said Friday from her home in Burin Bay Arm. "I've ran into this problem a couple of times. ...more
Saturday, August 08, 2009
Nurses and pharmacists to be given off-label prescribing rights
From Pulse (UK):
Exclusive: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is planning a controversial change in the law to allow nurses and pharmacists to prescribe off-label treatments, in a move that has split prescribing experts.
The UK drug regulator says it expects regulations to change by the end of the year, but critics say the move could expose patients to potentially dangerous treatments.
It is the latest in a series of developments to loosen the rules surrounding non-medical prescribing, coming just weeks after Pulse revealed proposals to extend prescribing rights to physiotherapists, dieticians and chiropodists.
The MHRA now says it wants to ‘regularise’ restrictions on prescribers and allow prescribing nurses and pharmacists the same freedoms as doctors.
Such a change will require the Home Office and the Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs to alter Misuse of Drugs Regulations - but the Government has already accepted the recommendations, made by the MHRA’s Commission on Human Medicines. ...more
Exclusive: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is planning a controversial change in the law to allow nurses and pharmacists to prescribe off-label treatments, in a move that has split prescribing experts.
The UK drug regulator says it expects regulations to change by the end of the year, but critics say the move could expose patients to potentially dangerous treatments.
It is the latest in a series of developments to loosen the rules surrounding non-medical prescribing, coming just weeks after Pulse revealed proposals to extend prescribing rights to physiotherapists, dieticians and chiropodists.
The MHRA now says it wants to ‘regularise’ restrictions on prescribers and allow prescribing nurses and pharmacists the same freedoms as doctors.
Such a change will require the Home Office and the Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs to alter Misuse of Drugs Regulations - but the Government has already accepted the recommendations, made by the MHRA’s Commission on Human Medicines. ...more
Friday, June 26, 2009
Shoppers Drug Mart may get lift from prescription legislation
From the Financial Post:
Could changes to the dispensing powers of pharmacists be a boon for Shoppers Drug Mart Ltd.?
Analyst Robert Gibson of Octagon Capital notes pending or already enacted legislation across Canada will lead to changes in pay for pharmacists by their home provinces, although there will not be much clarity on the issue until 2010.
“We believe that the fee the pharmacist will get for extending, adapting, or adjusting a prescription, for example, will be less than what doctors are charging for a similar service,” Mr. Gibson wrote in a note to clients, hiking his target price on the stock to $57 from $49.25. He maintained his "buy" rating on the shares. “Thus, it is in the provincial governments’ interest to proceed.” ...more
Could changes to the dispensing powers of pharmacists be a boon for Shoppers Drug Mart Ltd.?
Analyst Robert Gibson of Octagon Capital notes pending or already enacted legislation across Canada will lead to changes in pay for pharmacists by their home provinces, although there will not be much clarity on the issue until 2010.
“We believe that the fee the pharmacist will get for extending, adapting, or adjusting a prescription, for example, will be less than what doctors are charging for a similar service,” Mr. Gibson wrote in a note to clients, hiking his target price on the stock to $57 from $49.25. He maintained his "buy" rating on the shares. “Thus, it is in the provincial governments’ interest to proceed.” ...more
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Ont. health-care professionals to get new powers under government bill
From the Canadian Press:
Ontario wants to broaden the scope of practice for many health-care professionals as part of a strategy to address the chronic shortage of doctors, proposing new rules that would allow nurse practitioners to set broken bones and give dental hygienists the power to write prescriptions and sell medicine.
Under legislation introduced Monday, dentists would be able to fill prescriptions, pharmacists would be allowed to write refills for prescriptions, and physiotherapists would be given the power to order X-rays and treat injuries.
The proposed changes will make Ontario's health-care system more efficient and more accessible, Premier Dalton McGuinty said.
"It will free up doctors to do those kinds of things which only doctors can do," McGuinty said. "There's a number of things doctors are doing on their own right now that we think other health-care professionals can do as well." ...more
Ontario wants to broaden the scope of practice for many health-care professionals as part of a strategy to address the chronic shortage of doctors, proposing new rules that would allow nurse practitioners to set broken bones and give dental hygienists the power to write prescriptions and sell medicine.
Under legislation introduced Monday, dentists would be able to fill prescriptions, pharmacists would be allowed to write refills for prescriptions, and physiotherapists would be given the power to order X-rays and treat injuries.
The proposed changes will make Ontario's health-care system more efficient and more accessible, Premier Dalton McGuinty said.
"It will free up doctors to do those kinds of things which only doctors can do," McGuinty said. "There's a number of things doctors are doing on their own right now that we think other health-care professionals can do as well." ...more
Monday, April 27, 2009
Health-care workers to get broader powers
From the Toronto Star:
Ontario is about to move ahead with plans to allow pharmacists, nurse practitioners and other health-care professionals to provide some services now performed by doctors, Premier Dalton McGuinty says.
Pharmacists would, for instance, be able to extend prescription refills, one of a series of moves aimed at easing long waits for health care, said McGuinty.
The necessary legislative changes will be made "very soon," he said.
"Our government plans to better utilize your skills and maximize your contributions," McGuinty told the annual general meeting of the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario in Markham. "Families seeking health care will experience the difference."
The premier went on to give examples of how the changes should help shorten wait times and enhance access to care.
"Instead of waiting in the emergency room to see a physician, you would have your fracture set by a nurse practitioner, who is qualified to do it ... and you'll be on your way home," he said. "People needing a prescription refill would be able to make one trip to a pharmacist instead of two trips: one to the doctor and then one to the pharmacist." ...more
Ontario is about to move ahead with plans to allow pharmacists, nurse practitioners and other health-care professionals to provide some services now performed by doctors, Premier Dalton McGuinty says.
Pharmacists would, for instance, be able to extend prescription refills, one of a series of moves aimed at easing long waits for health care, said McGuinty.
The necessary legislative changes will be made "very soon," he said.
"Our government plans to better utilize your skills and maximize your contributions," McGuinty told the annual general meeting of the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario in Markham. "Families seeking health care will experience the difference."
The premier went on to give examples of how the changes should help shorten wait times and enhance access to care.
"Instead of waiting in the emergency room to see a physician, you would have your fracture set by a nurse practitioner, who is qualified to do it ... and you'll be on your way home," he said. "People needing a prescription refill would be able to make one trip to a pharmacist instead of two trips: one to the doctor and then one to the pharmacist." ...more
Sunday, March 22, 2009
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
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
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Pharmacists want power to renew prescriptions
From the Windsor (Ont.) Star:
Giving pharmacists authority to fill some prescriptions without a doctor’s order would help patients in our physician shortage-plagued region, a local pharmacist says.
David Malian, a LaSalle pharmacist and past-president of the Ontario Pharmacists Association, is endorsing the recommendation that Ontario pharmacists be given more power to order prescription refills and give people meds for minor ailments without a doctor’s sanction.
“Pharmacists are well-educated, well-trained … and they’re the most accessible health care professional that a patient can see,” Malian said in an interview this week. “Allowing them to expand their scope of practice, in conjunction and in communication with other health care practitioners, only will enhance better health care.”
Last fall, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council submitted a report to the Ministry of Health that recommends allowing pharmacists to extend or adjust prescriptions, order lab tests and dispense medication for simple ailments like rashes and pink eye. The ministry has said it will study the report and ask for input from health professionals and the public....more
Giving pharmacists authority to fill some prescriptions without a doctor’s order would help patients in our physician shortage-plagued region, a local pharmacist says.
David Malian, a LaSalle pharmacist and past-president of the Ontario Pharmacists Association, is endorsing the recommendation that Ontario pharmacists be given more power to order prescription refills and give people meds for minor ailments without a doctor’s sanction.
“Pharmacists are well-educated, well-trained … and they’re the most accessible health care professional that a patient can see,” Malian said in an interview this week. “Allowing them to expand their scope of practice, in conjunction and in communication with other health care practitioners, only will enhance better health care.”
Last fall, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council submitted a report to the Ministry of Health that recommends allowing pharmacists to extend or adjust prescriptions, order lab tests and dispense medication for simple ailments like rashes and pink eye. The ministry has said it will study the report and ask for input from health professionals and the public....more
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Let pharmacists prescribe: advisory council
From the Sault (ON) Star:
Pharmacists will play a larger role in the delivery of health care, including being able to write some prescriptions and adapt existing ones, if the provincial government accepts several proposals before it.
With guidance from the Ontario Pharmacists' Association and Ontario College of Pharmacists, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council released a report last month recommending changes to the scope of practice for a number of medical professions.
"The idea is for a more collaborative health care system, so it's not just doctors doing everything but everybody working together," said Tina Perlman, chair of the OPA board of directors.
Perlman, a Sault Ste. Marie native who now works as a community pharmacist in London, was here Monday to host the annual district meeting. She said pharmacists are keen to better use the skills they graduate with after a minimum six years of study.
According to the report, Canadian pharmacy programs turn out graduates "who would be equally competent in the skill of prescribing drugs and managing drugs" as medical students. The difference is those medical students then go on to hone their skills in residency and practice. ...more
Pharmacists will play a larger role in the delivery of health care, including being able to write some prescriptions and adapt existing ones, if the provincial government accepts several proposals before it.
With guidance from the Ontario Pharmacists' Association and Ontario College of Pharmacists, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council released a report last month recommending changes to the scope of practice for a number of medical professions.
"The idea is for a more collaborative health care system, so it's not just doctors doing everything but everybody working together," said Tina Perlman, chair of the OPA board of directors.
Perlman, a Sault Ste. Marie native who now works as a community pharmacist in London, was here Monday to host the annual district meeting. She said pharmacists are keen to better use the skills they graduate with after a minimum six years of study.
According to the report, Canadian pharmacy programs turn out graduates "who would be equally competent in the skill of prescribing drugs and managing drugs" as medical students. The difference is those medical students then go on to hone their skills in residency and practice. ...more
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Pharmacists seek expanded role
From the London (Ont.) Free Press:
Expanding the role of pharmacists to include prescribing medications for some ailments will give Ontarians a more efficient system and better access to care, says the head of the Ontario Pharmacists' Association.
"There would be reduced pressure on the health-care system," said Tina Perlman, a London pharmacist and president of the association.
That recommendation and others were made last fall to the province by an advisory council. Health-care professionals are waiting to see if the government will move on the advice. While the pharmacists' association has embraced a larger role for its members, doctors' groups have been skeptical and the president of the Ontario Medical Association says he's puzzled by the recommendations.
Perlman emphasized the pharmacists would continue to work closely with doctors. And the ailments pharmacists would provide prescriptions for would be minor problems such as athlete's foot, yeast infections, acne, migraines and cold sores.
"If a patient needs to be accessed for a minor ailment and that is something a pharmacist can do, it eliminates them from going to a doctor's office or going and sitting in an emergency department. ...more
Expanding the role of pharmacists to include prescribing medications for some ailments will give Ontarians a more efficient system and better access to care, says the head of the Ontario Pharmacists' Association.
"There would be reduced pressure on the health-care system," said Tina Perlman, a London pharmacist and president of the association.
That recommendation and others were made last fall to the province by an advisory council. Health-care professionals are waiting to see if the government will move on the advice. While the pharmacists' association has embraced a larger role for its members, doctors' groups have been skeptical and the president of the Ontario Medical Association says he's puzzled by the recommendations.
Perlman emphasized the pharmacists would continue to work closely with doctors. And the ailments pharmacists would provide prescriptions for would be minor problems such as athlete's foot, yeast infections, acne, migraines and cold sores.
"If a patient needs to be accessed for a minor ailment and that is something a pharmacist can do, it eliminates them from going to a doctor's office or going and sitting in an emergency department. ...more
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Pharmacists now allowed to renew prescriptions
From Surrey (BC) Now:
Patients who run out of routine medications can now ask their pharmacist to renew their prescriptions without always having to get a new prescription from their doctor.
The change came into effect on January 1.
Health Minister George Abbott said the ministry wants to make it easier for people with chronic illnesses to manage their conditions.
"This change is inspired by what British Columbians told us during the Conversation on Health - that people wanted improved access to health services and greater choice about where they receive those services."
Under the Health Professions (Regulatory Reform) Amendment Act, pharmacists are now permitted to renew most routine prescription medications for up to six months without the patient requiring a new doctor's prescription. Patients with long-term but stable conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes, who have been on the same medication for at least six months and are running out of their drugs, qualify to have their pharmacist renew their prescription. ...more
Patients who run out of routine medications can now ask their pharmacist to renew their prescriptions without always having to get a new prescription from their doctor.
The change came into effect on January 1.
Health Minister George Abbott said the ministry wants to make it easier for people with chronic illnesses to manage their conditions.
"This change is inspired by what British Columbians told us during the Conversation on Health - that people wanted improved access to health services and greater choice about where they receive those services."
Under the Health Professions (Regulatory Reform) Amendment Act, pharmacists are now permitted to renew most routine prescription medications for up to six months without the patient requiring a new doctor's prescription. Patients with long-term but stable conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes, who have been on the same medication for at least six months and are running out of their drugs, qualify to have their pharmacist renew their prescription. ...more
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Pharmacists take on expanded role starting January
From Arrow Lakes (BC) News:
As part of a new agreement between the government of B.C. and the B.C. Pharmacy Association, pharmacists will be taking on a bigger role when it comes to prescription medications.
As of Jan. 1, B.C. pharmacists will have the legal authority to renew or adapt existing prescriptions to better suit the patient.
Pharmacist Troy Clark of People’s Pharmacy in Nakusp says it’s a step up for the role of pharmacists.
“[It is] increasing our scope of practice,” says Clark. “It’s something that we’re capable of doing.”
A pamphlet available at People’s Pharmacy states benefits of the change include allowing your pharmacist to help manage medications for patients between visits to the doctor.
“This medication management thing that’s coming now, the new policy that’s come out, it’s just giving us the authority,” says Clark. “Now we have the legal authority to do some of those things that we were maybe doing already.” ...more
As part of a new agreement between the government of B.C. and the B.C. Pharmacy Association, pharmacists will be taking on a bigger role when it comes to prescription medications.
As of Jan. 1, B.C. pharmacists will have the legal authority to renew or adapt existing prescriptions to better suit the patient.
Pharmacist Troy Clark of People’s Pharmacy in Nakusp says it’s a step up for the role of pharmacists.
“[It is] increasing our scope of practice,” says Clark. “It’s something that we’re capable of doing.”
A pamphlet available at People’s Pharmacy states benefits of the change include allowing your pharmacist to help manage medications for patients between visits to the doctor.
“This medication management thing that’s coming now, the new policy that’s come out, it’s just giving us the authority,” says Clark. “Now we have the legal authority to do some of those things that we were maybe doing already.” ...more
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Drugs, drugs, drugs
From the Kawartha Lakes (Ont.) This Week:
As a third generation pharmacist, Marc Scanlon has seen the profession evolve since his grandfather's time.
In 1925 when Mr. Scanlon's grandfather began his career, pharmacists were not even allowed to print the names of the drugs on the prescriptions' labels, he says. But things have changed and they continue to change.
In a report to the Minister of Health and Long-term Care released in September, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council is recommending expanding the power of pharmacists to include some services that normally require a doctor.
"In this upcoming holiday season I will probably see people every day in my pharmacy who need medication that they need to see a doctor for, and their doctor is away," says Mr. Scanlon of the Clinic Pharmacy--Pharmasave in the Peterborough Clinic. ...more
As a third generation pharmacist, Marc Scanlon has seen the profession evolve since his grandfather's time.
In 1925 when Mr. Scanlon's grandfather began his career, pharmacists were not even allowed to print the names of the drugs on the prescriptions' labels, he says. But things have changed and they continue to change.
In a report to the Minister of Health and Long-term Care released in September, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council is recommending expanding the power of pharmacists to include some services that normally require a doctor.
"In this upcoming holiday season I will probably see people every day in my pharmacy who need medication that they need to see a doctor for, and their doctor is away," says Mr. Scanlon of the Clinic Pharmacy--Pharmasave in the Peterborough Clinic. ...more
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Pharmacists shouldn't prescribe smoking drugs: critics
From the Globe and Mail:
Smokers looking to kick the habit might chew nicotine gum or wear a patch sold over the counter in drug stores across Canada to give them an extra boost. But should they also be able to bypass the doctor and head to the drugstore if they're looking for something stronger?
A growing number of pharmacists across Canada think they should - and the idea is drawing sharp criticism from some drug-safety experts.
A few dozen Alberta pharmacists are currently authorized to write prescriptions for Zyban and Champix, the brand names of two common smoking-cessation drugs.
An advisory council to Ontario's health ministry is recommending that pharmacists in the province also be allowed to write prescriptions for smoking-cessation drugs. The recommendation is contained in a broader report that supports expanding the power of pharmacists to prescribe drugs for minor ailments, as well as to alter prescriptions or change dosages.
While Ontario's Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council admits that nicotine addiction is not a "minor ailment," it says pharmacists in the province should be able to write prescriptions for stop-smoking drugs as a way to improve access for those who want to quit. ...more
Smokers looking to kick the habit might chew nicotine gum or wear a patch sold over the counter in drug stores across Canada to give them an extra boost. But should they also be able to bypass the doctor and head to the drugstore if they're looking for something stronger?
A growing number of pharmacists across Canada think they should - and the idea is drawing sharp criticism from some drug-safety experts.
A few dozen Alberta pharmacists are currently authorized to write prescriptions for Zyban and Champix, the brand names of two common smoking-cessation drugs.
An advisory council to Ontario's health ministry is recommending that pharmacists in the province also be allowed to write prescriptions for smoking-cessation drugs. The recommendation is contained in a broader report that supports expanding the power of pharmacists to prescribe drugs for minor ailments, as well as to alter prescriptions or change dosages.
While Ontario's Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council admits that nicotine addiction is not a "minor ailment," it says pharmacists in the province should be able to write prescriptions for stop-smoking drugs as a way to improve access for those who want to quit. ...more
Pharmacists eye greater responsibilities
From the Midland (Ont.) Mirror:
Ontario pharmacists could soon be able to fill and write prescriptions for minor sicknesses without a doctor’s order, recommends a report released Nov. 18 by the provincial health ministry.
Rather than having to go to a doctor or hospital for every small health issue, pharmacies could become the first stop for prescription extensions, drug adjustments and medication monitoring through pharmacist-ordered lab tests, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council has recommended.
The report also suggests pharmacists be allowed to:
• adjust prescriptions;
• extend some refills;
• order lab tests to ensure medications are working properly;
• teach people how to inject themselves with medications and use blood-testing devices;
• initiate smoking-cessation treatments, including the use of prescription addiction suppressors. ...more
Ontario pharmacists could soon be able to fill and write prescriptions for minor sicknesses without a doctor’s order, recommends a report released Nov. 18 by the provincial health ministry.
Rather than having to go to a doctor or hospital for every small health issue, pharmacies could become the first stop for prescription extensions, drug adjustments and medication monitoring through pharmacist-ordered lab tests, the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council has recommended.
The report also suggests pharmacists be allowed to:
• adjust prescriptions;
• extend some refills;
• order lab tests to ensure medications are working properly;
• teach people how to inject themselves with medications and use blood-testing devices;
• initiate smoking-cessation treatments, including the use of prescription addiction suppressors. ...more
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
A new remedy for medicine
From the Ottawa Citizen:
You walk into a drug store to get your prescription renewed. It's a drug you've taken for years and you are seeing medical professionals about its use.
The pharmacist tells you the two-year prescription has expired. You can't get the drugs you need. That's not good.
Getting the prescription renewed means taking time from a general practitioner, or worse, a specialist who is being run off his or her feet by the problems of an aging population. There should be an easier way.
The Health Professions Regulatory Agency Council, an advisory group of seven members of the public who report to the provincial minister, says pharmacists should have the power to write prescriptions for minor health problems without a doctor's permission. And the pharmacy should be allowed to extend prescriptions, order lab tests and adjust drugs, the council said. In theory, this would cut the volume of patients visiting doctors or going to emergency wards. ...more
You walk into a drug store to get your prescription renewed. It's a drug you've taken for years and you are seeing medical professionals about its use.
The pharmacist tells you the two-year prescription has expired. You can't get the drugs you need. That's not good.
Getting the prescription renewed means taking time from a general practitioner, or worse, a specialist who is being run off his or her feet by the problems of an aging population. There should be an easier way.
The Health Professions Regulatory Agency Council, an advisory group of seven members of the public who report to the provincial minister, says pharmacists should have the power to write prescriptions for minor health problems without a doctor's permission. And the pharmacy should be allowed to extend prescriptions, order lab tests and adjust drugs, the council said. In theory, this would cut the volume of patients visiting doctors or going to emergency wards. ...more
Monday, November 24, 2008
Skip the doctor's office, go right to the drugstore
I shudder when I read the first paragraph of this article. While I am in favour of pharmacist prescribing, we have to remember the difference between prescribing and diagnosing. Pharmacists aren't trained to diagnose most ailments. Our role needs to be the optimizers of drug therapy, but this is after a dignosis is made. I can adjust warfarin dosages at least as capably as a physician, but I can't diagnose any of the conditions that would lead to being on the drug such as a deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, or atrial fibrillation for example.
From the Globe and Mail:
Should a nasty cold or poison ivy require a trip to the doctor to get a prescription? What about an earache, urinary tract infection or something as serious as a pre-existing heart problem?
Those are the questions many health professionals across Canada are grappling with as more provinces look to grant pharmacists greater power to prescribe drugs.
This week, an advisory council to Ontario's Health Ministry recommended that pharmacists in the province be allowed to write prescriptions for minor conditions, adjust dosages, extend prescriptions and order laboratory tests in some instances.
The move follows developments across the country to expand the role of pharmacists. ...more
Saturday, November 15, 2008
P.E.I. pharmacists to be able to prescribe
I missed posting some articles while I took a break. I will attempt to catch up over the weekend. This one might have been one of the most interesting in the world of Canadian pharmacy.
From CBC News:
Prince Edward Island pharmacists will soon be given the authority to write prescriptions for their customers.
Changes to provincial legislation allowing pharmacists to renew some prescriptions are expected to be passed next month in the legislature.
Currently, when a prescription runs out and a person doesn't have a refill from the doctor, P.E.I. pharmacists can't do much except provide a few pills to tide the person over. The new legislation will change that.
"This is not prescribing something new; we are not diagnosing anything," Neala Auld, registrar of the P.E.I. Pharmacy Board, told CBC News Thursday.
Allowing pharmacists to renew some prescriptions will be a great convenience for patients, said Auld, particularly those without a family doctor.
"It puts patients in a very difficult position having to get a new prescription and wait maybe two or three hours in outpatients for something that easily could be addressed at the pharmacy level," she said. ...more
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Let us renew meds, save cash: N.L. pharmacists
From CBC News:
Pharmacists in Newfoundland and Labrador are asking the provincial government for authority to extend drug prescriptions, on grounds it would improve patient care and save money.
The pharmacists say millions of dollars are being unnecessarily spent because too many patients head to emergency rooms for treatment or prescriptions, when better alternatives could be made available.
Wayne Morris, president of the Newfoundland Council of Community Pharmacy Owners, said he sees about two or three people each day who must either face not taking medications or heading to hospitals for prescriptions.
The consequences, he said, can be serious.
"If somebody's on insulin and can't get it for a week or 10 days, [then] basically what you have to realize is that they are going to end up in hospital," said Morris, who owns a pharmacy in Grand Falls-Windsor. ...more
Pharmacists in Newfoundland and Labrador are asking the provincial government for authority to extend drug prescriptions, on grounds it would improve patient care and save money.
The pharmacists say millions of dollars are being unnecessarily spent because too many patients head to emergency rooms for treatment or prescriptions, when better alternatives could be made available.
Wayne Morris, president of the Newfoundland Council of Community Pharmacy Owners, said he sees about two or three people each day who must either face not taking medications or heading to hospitals for prescriptions.
The consequences, he said, can be serious.
"If somebody's on insulin and can't get it for a week or 10 days, [then] basically what you have to realize is that they are going to end up in hospital," said Morris, who owns a pharmacy in Grand Falls-Windsor. ...more
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Just what the druggist ordered
From the Saint John (NB) Telegraph Journal:
It's about to become much easier for New Brunswickers to get the medications they need without waiting for the OK from their doctors.
Changes to the province's Pharmacy Act come into effect tomorrow, significantly expanding the role of the pharmacist in replacing, renewing and, in some cases, issuing prescriptions.
"It's going to improve access for people who need their medications," said Lisa Zwicker, a pharmacist in Saint John.
"And it will save steps for us. Lots of times we have to stop and call or fax a doctor and wait to hear back in order to fill a prescription. It will eliminate that step. I don't think it will make our jobs any busier, but I think it will be better for everyone."
New Brunswick's 700 pharmacists fill more than nine million prescriptions every year.
Bill Veniot, registrar with New Brunswick's Pharmaceutical Society, said the new legislation finally recognizes the extensive training and experience of pharmacists.
"We're experts in drug therapy," Veniot said at a news conference in Fredericton on Tuesday.
"It's natural that we take on more authority with respect to prescribing certain medications." ...more
It's about to become much easier for New Brunswickers to get the medications they need without waiting for the OK from their doctors.
Changes to the province's Pharmacy Act come into effect tomorrow, significantly expanding the role of the pharmacist in replacing, renewing and, in some cases, issuing prescriptions.
"It's going to improve access for people who need their medications," said Lisa Zwicker, a pharmacist in Saint John.
"And it will save steps for us. Lots of times we have to stop and call or fax a doctor and wait to hear back in order to fill a prescription. It will eliminate that step. I don't think it will make our jobs any busier, but I think it will be better for everyone."
New Brunswick's 700 pharmacists fill more than nine million prescriptions every year.
Bill Veniot, registrar with New Brunswick's Pharmaceutical Society, said the new legislation finally recognizes the extensive training and experience of pharmacists.
"We're experts in drug therapy," Veniot said at a news conference in Fredericton on Tuesday.
"It's natural that we take on more authority with respect to prescribing certain medications." ...more
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