pharmacy technician - Ontario College of Pharmacists

EDITOR'S MESSAGE
YOUR MANY
QUESTIONS HAVE
HELPED TO CLARIFY
ISSUES AS WE
MOVE FORWARD
Della Croteau, R.Ph., B.S.P., M.C.Ed.
Deputy Registrar/Director of
Professional Development
Thank you to all members who
joined us for the webcasts
regarding the new regulations
to the Drug and Pharmacies
Regulation Act. We had an
overwhelming response to the
webcasts and your many questions
have helped to clarify issues as we
move forward.
The changes to the Drug and
Pharmacies Regulation Act
were approved and came into
effect in mid-March, just a
week after our March Council
meeting. Through the webcast
technology, the College was
able to quickly plan and hold
a series of webcasts to inform
members of the implications of
these changes. Following the
webcasts, College staff developed
a robust set of frequently asked
questions that we hope will serve
as an excellent reference for
both practitioners and pharmacy
operators. Inside this issue of
Pharmacy Connection, we have
published the highlights of the
new regulations, as well as the
Frequently Asked Questions – I
urge you to take a look through
and contact the College if there is
any further clarification required.
As we roll out the new regulations
to the DPRA, we are also
anticipating new regulations
under the Pharmacy Act which
will provide an enhanced scope
of practice for pharmacists in
Ontario. We hope soon to be able
to join our colleagues across the
country who are at various stages
of practising and implementing an
enhanced scope. The long awaited
changes in legislation are now
becoming reality and pharmacists
and pharmacy technicians have an
opportunity to build new practice
models to provide new levels of
care to patients in Ontario.
Our new quarterly publication
schedule for Pharmacy
Connection allows us to print
some more extensive articles
such as the ones on social
media and continuing education
coordinators. As usual, we have
published our Council report from
March in this issue, but we now
also publish Council reports on
our website as soon as they are
approved (so you don’t need to
wait for the publication to find out
what Council discussed). We also
communicate by email and fax
anything of an urgent nature to
keep members informed between
issues of Pharmacy Connection.
As we reported in the last issue
of Pharmacy Connection, Deanna
Williams will be leaving us at the
end of May after 11 years as
College Registrar and six years as
Director of Programs and Deputy
Registrar before that. On behalf
of the staff of the College, we
wish Deanna all the best in her
future. We will miss her warmth,
enthusiasm and her passion for
regulating the profession in the
public interest. Take a look at page
20 for a tribute to Deanna.
PAGE 4 ~ SPRING 2011 ~ PHARMACY CONNECTION