Ontario Hospitals Request Bids for Remote Medication Order Review

The Wellington Health Care Alliance in Ontario, Canada has posted a request for proposal for a 1 year contract for a Canadian firm to do order review and entry for three sites for 1 year:

Notice Description:

Telepharmacy Coverage for Wellington Health Care Alliance

Wellington Health Care Alliance is a relationship between North Wellington Health Care and Groves Memorial Community Hospital. We operate three sites:

Louise Marshall Hospital, Mount Forest
Palmerston District Hospital, Palmerston
Groves Memorial Community Hospital, Fergus

Term of Contract will be 1 year from May 1, 2011 to April 30, 2012

Service Requested
• To provide telepharmacy coverage for 2 corporations and 3 hospitals that includes medication order review and pharmaceutical advice to staff and physicians

2009: Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay, Ontario Receives Pharmacy Services via Telepharmacy

I just came across an entry in the Canadian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy that highlights Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay, Ontario receiving pharmacy services remotely Mon-Fri from an undisclosed pharmacy. The rest of the work is "tech-check-tech".

Ontario Hospitals will Dispense Drugs via PharmaTrust Kiosks

The PharmaTrust dispensing machine is set to be deployed in Canadian hospitals in the province of Ontario, according to an Ontario Hospital Association press release:

The OHA and PharmaTrust will collaborate on the installation of telepharmacy prescription-dispensing kiosks in hospitals across the province.

PharmaTrust MedCentre kiosks offer live video pharmacist counseling and quick and safe 24/7 access to prescription and over-the-counter medications, dispensed under the complete control of a pharmacist. The PharmaTrust MedCentre allows patients to simply insert their prescription, pick up the handset and interact live with a pharmacist who provides counselling via two-way video conferencing. The pharmacist is supported by integrated safety features to ensure prescription authenticity, accuracy and patient safety.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that the kiosk was developed by Patient Care Automation Services, Inc with a grant from the National Research Council of Canada, and was trialed in Toronto's Sunnybrook Hospital.

New Legislation Paves Way for Remote Dispensing in Ontario, Canada

The Ontario legislature passed Bill 179, which will allow remote dispensing in the province:

The new legislation will permit PCA Services Inc. of Oakville to roll out its PharmaTrust(TM) Med Centres across the province - something the company has been working towards for four years. Once the regulations are in place, it is expected that Med Centres will be deployed to service patients in medical clinics, hospitals, employer facilities, retail locations, and remote communities that cannot economically support a traditional drug store.

Check out the press release. We've covered the remote prescription dispensing machine previously here at the Telepharmacy Blog, and also this legislation when it was first being considered. Here are some promo videos and news pieces from Youtube:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gU30LnS2qso




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-kGuOu1GQ0

Ontario, Canada considering retail telepharmacy legislation

Current law in the Canadian province of Ontario restricts the remote dispensation of medication, machines for which already exist and are being tested, and there are amendments to legislation in the works to allow remote dispensing. Check the Ontario College of Pharmacists' entry on the matter.

In an online article from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario's Sault Star:

Basically, the legislation enables the private sector to install the technology to meet demand, wherever that is, because "right now in Ontario law you have to have a pharmacist physically present," Erwin said.

Two machines have been tested at Toronto's Sunnybrook Hospital since June. British Columbia is already using the technology, he said.

The "ScriptCenter" is one model that holds between 400 and 500 unique patient prescriptions that has been approved in 35 U.S. states, he said.

The rest of the article is opinions from a couple local Ontario pharmacists who seem be more concerned about losing customers to automation than they are with the vast numbers of people who need prescriptions filled in under-served or outright unserviced areas of the province, though it could be that they simply left better reasons unspoken. As the Health Minister spokesman David Caplan seems to have said, "This is just providing another option. In no way is it meant to replace pharmacists."