(Pharmacist image via Shutterstock)
Manitoba’s pharmacy association is calling on the province to expand what pharmacists are allowed to treat, warning it has fallen further behind the rest of Canada and is at risk of losing a generation of newly trained healthcare professionals.
Pharmacists Manitoba says between 130,000 and 225,000 Manitobans currently lack access to primary care, and argues that expanding pharmacists’ scope of practice is one of the fastest ways to close that gap.
“When people don’t have timely, reliable access to primary care, their health can suffer and conditions may go untreated, said Gayle Romanetz, president of Pharmacists Manitoba, in a release. “It can ultimately lead to avoidable visits to the hospital or ER.”
Manitoba pharmacists can currently assess patients and prescribe for 14 medical conditions — the lowest of any province in Canada. By comparison, Saskatchewan allows 41, Alberta 58, and B.C., the next closest, permits 31. The association is asking the province to expand that list to 41 conditions when the legislature next sits again in the fall, covering everything from strep throat and ear infections to yeast infections, cold sores, and travel medications.
According to a recent Pharmacists Manitoba survey, 62 percent of current pharmacy students are considering leaving the province to work where they can use their full training, while 53 percent of recent graduates are weighing the same move and seven percent have already signed contracts elsewhere.
“Manitoba is basically training pharmacists for other provinces. It doesn’t make much sense,” said Andrea Lear, CEO of Pharmacists Manitoba.
Premier Wab Kinew said on Thursday the province is open to having a conversation with the organization on the issue.
“We’ve done this [expanded pharmacists’ scope] in a few areas,” Kinew said during a media scrum with reporters. “The question is just about… in which areas.”
More than 1,700 pharmacists work across roughly 500 locations in 90 Manitoba communities, according to figures released by the organization.
