New Controlled Substances Guidance from Health Canada

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New controlled substances Guidance from Health Canada

Health Canada has released an updated guidance document for community pharmacists to help pharmacists comply with the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act and its associated regulations.

Health Canada Guidance Document
 

Controlled substances guidance for community pharmacists: security, inventory reconciliation and record-keeping

The document provides guidance and recommendations to pharmacists in the areas of:

  • physical security measures and restricted access
  • destruction procedures and records
  • inventory and reconciliation
  • record keeping (purchase and receiving, dispensing, returns, etc.)
  • pharmacy closure or transfer of ownership
  • loss and theft reporting
  • notice of restriction
  • section 56 class exemption

The guidance document, which was previously found on the National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities (NAPRA) website, can be found on Health Canada’s new web page, which also contains other resources for pharmacists on controlled substances and precursors:

Any questions of interpretation concerning this guidance document should be directed to the National Compliance Section within the Office of Controlled Substances at: 

May 19, 2023