On the contrary, an essential part of our job as pharmacists is to talk to you and discuss any questions you may have about your medications.

Yes. Please talk to your pharmacist. Too few patients take advantage of the pharmacist's knowledge and ask questions about non-prescription drugs and alternative therapies.

The British Columbia Pharmacare program offers a number of programs which cover some or all of the cost of prescription drugs for people who live in British Columbia.

There is a lot more to preparing your prescription than counting pills, typing a label and sticking it on a container. Your pharmacist checks the medication, dose and instructions to make sure they are right for you. S/he reviews your confidential PharmaNet profile to check for possible problems. This may include allergies or interactions with other medications you are taking. Your pharmacist enters the details of your current prescription onto your PharmaNet profile. Once your prescription is filled and checked your pharmacist talks to you about why you have been prescribed this particular drug. S/he counsels you on how and when to take your medication, what potential side effects you may need to watch for and how to store your medication.

Your pharmacist’s main responsibility is to find, fix and prevent drug related problems. Many medications can be used for more than one medical condition. In order to ensure that your medications are appropriate for you and that you will get the most benefit from them, your pharmacist has to understand why you are taking the medications.

Your pharmacist’s main responsibility is to find, fix and prevent drug related problems. Many medications can be used for more than one medical condition. In order to ensure that your medications are appropriate for you and that you will get the most benefit from them, your pharmacist has to understand why you are taking the medications. Sometimes they need to contact your doctor to confirm the reason the medication has been prescribed, or they may have some suggestions on a different medication or a different dosage that might work better for you. They may also want to talk the doctor about the other medications you are on, especially if there is a possibility of an interaction between two or more of your medications.

PharmaNet is a province wide computer network managed by the Provincial government. This network contains confidential personal profiles of everyone receiving prescription medications in B.C., whether dispensed in a community pharmacy or hospital outpatient pharmacy. This means PharmaNet tracks your entire prescription history, regardless of where you get your prescription filled in B.C. Information stored on PharmaNet helps your pharmacist make decisions about your overall health care including making sure your new medication will not interact with other medications you are taking. Your PharmaNet profile is completely confidential. It can be accessed only by a registered pharmacist or other authorized health care professional, and only when medically necessary. The PharmaNet system contains many security features to prevent unauthorized access to your Patient Record. However, if you still have concerns about security, you may attach a confidential Keyword of your choice to your Patient Record. You can also ask for a PharmaNet printout of your prescription history at any time.

No. In many pharmacies, pharmacists have pharmacy technicians to assist with the day-to-day technical functions, so that pharmacists can focus their time on patient care responsibilities. Pharmacy technicians support pharmacists by performing duties that do not require the professional skills and judgement of a pharmacist and assisting in those duties that do require the expertise of a pharmacist. They are often involved not only with counting pills but also with preparing drugs, entering drug orders, controlling pharmacy inventory, checking other technicians’ work, maintaining the function of complex equipment and obtaining insurance authorizations. Pharmacy technicians may be trained on-the-job or certified through a formal technician program. Pharmacy technicians are employed in every practice setting where there is a pharmacy including community, hospital and long-term care pharmacies.

There are specific classes of drugs under the Controlled Prescription Program (including narcotics) which have the potential for inappropriate use. These drugs must be written on a Controlled Prescription Program form for tracking purposes to reduce the potential for inappropriate prescribing and to prevent forgeries.