Patients diagonosed with heart disease and high blood pressure qualify to receive chronic disease care from a pharmacist.  

The pharmacists will provide an initial assessment to collect patient information, identity any potential medication problems to resolve and discuss your goals for care.

Together the patient and pharmacist will create a plan which could include:

• The pharmacist prescribing changes to your medications to help reach A1C, glucose, blood pressure and other goals.
• Guidance in minimizing or avoiding adverse effects from your medication
• In-pharmacy finger-stick testing for A1C and cholesterol if applicable (reducing the number of lab visits required)
• Training and support with home blood pressure monitoring
• Support and coaching to meet any lifestyle goals you set such as diet, exercise or smoking cessation
• Ensuring you are up to date on the recommended immunizations for your condition 
• Setting a follow-up plan with the pharmacist to support you in achieving your goals.

Patients diagnosed with diabetes qualify to receive chronic disease care from a pharmacist.  

The pharmacists will provide an initial assessment to collect patient information, identity any potential medication problems to resolve and discuss your goals for care.

Together the patient and pharmacist will create a plan which could include:

• The pharmacist prescribing changes to your medications to help reach A1C, glucose, blood pressure and other goals.
• Guidance in minimizing or avoiding adverse effects from your medication
• In-pharmacy finger-stick testing for A1C and cholesterol (reducing the number of lab visits required)
• Training and support with home blood glucose or home blood pressure monitoring
• Support and coaching to meet any lifestyle goals you set such as diet, exercise or smoking cessation
• Ensuring you are up to date on the recommended immunizations for diabetes
• Setting a follow-up plan with the pharmacist to support you in achieving your goals.

An early start of antiviral medications for patients with shingles (herpes zoster) is very important. During your assessment, the pharmacist will assess your symptoms. Symptoms can include:

• pain or a tingling sensation in a limited area on one side of the face or torso
• red rash with small, fluid-filled blisters
• fever
• headache
• chills
• upset stomach

You will be provided information on skin care management, vaccines to prevent recurrence and be prescribed an antiviral medication, if needed. If a medication is prescribed during the assessment, the pharmacist will write a prescription. If the pharmacist finds that you have symptoms that can lead to more serious complications (such as vision impairment), they will refer you to emergency care.

A notification of any medications prescribed or test results will be sent to your physician or NP.  If you do not have one following your care, records are available to patients and available on the pharmacy file for 10 years.

Pharmacists are able to prescribe for uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTI), often referred to as bladder infections. In order to be assessed by a pharmacist you must:

• be 16 years of age or older
• have been assigned the sex of female at birth
• have been previously diagnosed with the condition at least once before
• have not had a UTI in the past 6 months

Pharmacists cannot assess or prescribe for UTIs for men or individuals under 16 and those that have not had a UTI in the past.

Your pharmacist will ask you a series of questions to determine if your infection meets the criteria for 'uncomplicated' or not. If they determine you have an uncomplicated infection, your pharmacist can prescribe an antibiotic based on your specific needs, medical conditions, allergies and past history.

You will not be required to provide a urine sample at a pharmacy, as guidelines do not require this for uncomplicated infections. 

If your infection does not meet the criteria for an uncomplicated UTI, your pharmacist will refer you to your primary care provider or nurse practitioner for further testing.

A notification of any medications prescribed or test results will be sent to your physician or NP.    If you do not have one following your care, records are available to patients and available on the pharmacy file for 10 years.

Medication & Mental Illness Assessments (Bloom Program)

Your pharmacist can help you with your mental health/addiction diagnoses in many ways including managing medication-related issues and provide one-on-one care. Patients must have been diagnosed with one or more mental health or addiction diagnoses and have a medication problem that they would like to work on with their pharmacist.  Click here to learn more about the Bloom Program and click here to find a site near you. 

Nicotine Dependence

Pharmacists are effective in providing a smoking cessation program and contributing to patient quit rates or reductions in the amount of nicotine used. They help smokers and those that use nicotine products reduce their use by providing behavioural counselling, creating quit plans, recommending nicotine replacement therapy and scheduling follow-up visits.

Take Home Naloxone Kits & Training

Naloxone is a medication that is injected to provide a partial or complete reversal of an opioid overdose.  This medication can prevent death and respiratory depression associated with opioid overdose.  Pharmacies can provide you with a free take home naloxone kit, recommended for those at risk of an opioid overdose and those who are most likely to witness and respond to an opioid overdose. The pharmacist will provide opioid overdose prevention education as well as training on the administration of naloxone.

Injections pharmacy professionals can administer*:

• Opioid Addiction Treatment
• Anti-psychotic medications
• Other (please ask)

*Prescription from another provider may be required for some injectable medications.  The pharmacist will conduct an assessment before each injection to ensure it is safe/suitable to administer.  Not all pharmacies provide this service, call your pharmacy to inquire. 

Pharmacists participating in the Community Pharmacy Primary Care Clinic Project can assess patients age 3 and over who have a sore ear(s).   These pharmacists can assess for both acute otitis externa “swimmer’s ear” and acute otitis media “ear infection”.  The pharmacist will ask questions about medical history, signs, and symptoms that the patient is experiencing and check inside the ears using an otoscope.  If the patient has signs of an acute bacterial infection a second device may be used to further support the diagnosis.

Patients that are excluded from this assessment in the clinic are those who have had ear tubes/previous ear surgery, those taking immunosuppressive medications/conditions, those with malignancy, those with recurrent acute otitis media (> 3 episodes in 6 months of >4-6 episodes in 12 months), those with persistent hearing loss (3-4 weeks following resolution of infection) or speech developmental concerns, those with chronic tympanic membrane perforation (>12 weeks) or those with pre-existing comorbidities (children with significant hear/lung/renal/liver/neuromuscular disease, cystic fibrosis or immunosuppression).

Depending on the signs/symptoms and the ear exam, patients might be instructed to watch-and-wait to see patients symptoms improve over 24-48 hours, patients might be given an antibiotic and pain management if it looks like a bacterial infection, or patients may be given recommendations on pain management if it appears to be a viral infection. In all recommendations, patients will be given signs/symptoms to monitor, follow up details or instructions on when to see another health care provider if necessary.