Hospital Telepharmacy Program Helps Canadian Towns Recover from the Pharmacist Shortage

This is the first mention of hospital telepharmacy in Canada! From the article:

“A small hospital can safely operate a medication storage and distribution system for their patients under the management of a registered nurse,” says Joan Kuiack, Director of Patient Care Services. “However, the addition of a pharmacist offers an enhanced quality of care to our patients.”

The hospital first contacted Kevin McDonald, manager of the hospital pharmacy telepharmacy program at Northern Pharmacy, about a year ago, but decided to try to organize a partnership with Renfrew Victoria Hospital for services of a pharmacist.

“We advertised nation-wide, but couldn’t find a pharmacist and so we went back to Kevin,” says Kuiack.

The North West Company is based out of Winnipeg; the Northern Pharmacy provides similar services to hospitals in areas such as Deep River, Cornwall and Moose Factory. McDonald, who hails from Deep River, initiated the telepharmacy project in 2004.

“A hospital pharmacist is very different from a retail pharmacist,” he says. “In smaller hospitals, there is not enough work to employ a pharmacist full-time, so it’s hard to attract them. We fill that need.”

Monique Yurkiw, a pharmacist with the company since July, will look after St. Francis Memorial. She and McDonald were at the hospital last week to test the system.

“It’s good,” she says. “We’re set to go.”