Since new legislation came into effect on Jan. 1 allowing Ontario pharmacists to prescribe for 13 “minor ailments,” some doctors have taken to social media to voice concerns.
With the ability to assess and write prescriptions for conditions such as pink eye and uncomplicated urinary tract infections — a regulatory change that brings Ontario in step with nine other provinces and territories — some doctors and students questioned the move in opinion columns and social media posts, suggesting pharmacists could potentially miss a more serious diagnosis, or that their new powers could lead to an over-prescribing of antibiotics.
Those ailments also include acid reflux, cold sores, oral thrush, allergies and hayfever, some types of rashes, painful menstruation, hemorrhoids, impetigo, insect bites and musculoskeletal sprains and strains. They can also prescribe preventative antibiotics for Lyme disease. Beverley Zwicker, CEO and registrar for the Nova Scotia College of Pharmacists, said pharmacists outside Ontario are "sort of scratching our heads a little bit … a lot of hoopla over something that everyone has been doing for a long time, clearly without harm."
Canadian pharmacy students get "just over 90 hours of instruction on these minor ailments," said Belcher in an email. “Although what the public sees is mostly pharmacists dispensing medication, their scope is actually much broader,” Zwicker said.Response: “We are professionals and ethically bound to do what is best for our patients, no different than any other health-care professional,” said Margaret Wing, chief executive officer of the Alberta Pharmacists’ Association.
There are potential conflicts of interest in any profession, Tadrous said, adding pharmacists are licensed and must follow professional ethics.
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