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New Standards for Prescription Product Preparation and Final Check
Preparing prescription products and performing final product checks are two important tasks performed by registrants across many different pharmacy practice settings. Establishing clear requirements for these tasks minimizes the risk of errors, reducing the likelihood of drug-related harm to patients and thus protecting public safety.
While the College’s existing bylaws include preparing and performing the final check of prescription products, there are currently no requirements regarding what these tasks involve.
It is important to address this gap in legislation to effectively mitigate the risk of patient harm. As a result, the College developed new standards for preparing a prescription product and performing the final product check of a dispensed prescription.
The new requirements are based on the National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities’ Model Standards of Practice for Canadian Pharmacy Technicians. Amendments to the Health Professions Act (HPA) – Bylaws, Schedule F, Part 1, 2, and 3 were approved by the College Board at the November 2016 Board Meeting.
The amended Bylaws have been filed with the Minister of Health and will come into effect on January 20, 2017.
Additional Bylaw Amendments and New Professional Practice Policy for Patient Identification
In conjunction with these new standards, the Board also approved new requirements and a new practice review policy for patient identification in the absence of face-to-face interaction.
New Standards Support the College’s Practice Review Program
These new standards will support the College’s Practice Review Program (PRP). Clear requirements for the preparation and final check of prescription products, as well as patient identification requirements for when there is no face to face interaction, were needed to effectively support practice reviews.
The implementation of PRP Phase 2: Hospital Practice was also approved at the November 2016 Board Meeting.
The new standards apply to all registrants. Although prescription product preparation and final product check are only focus areas in the Pharmacy Professionals Review for pharmacy technicians, all registrants will be expected to comply with the new standards within their respective practices.
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NEW STANDARDS FOR PREPARATION OF PRESCRIPTION PRODUCTS
Documentation of all activities pertaining to the preparation of prescription products must be done in writing, either on paper or electronically. Section 9.1 – Preparation of Prescription Product (1) A registrant who prepares a prescription product must ensure that: (a) The prescription product label matches the prescription information and the information on the manufacturer’s label with respect to: i. Drug, (b) The prescription product label matches the prescription information with respect to the matters set out in section 6(2)(a) to (g); (c) The drug is not expired and will not expire within the duration of use; and (d) His or her identity is documented in writing (2) A pharmacy manager must ensure that the record in paragraph (1)(d) is readily available and is retained for at least three years from the date on which the prescription product was last dispensed. Health Professions Act (HPA) – Bylaws, Schedule F, Part 2 – Hospital Pharmacy Standards of Practice. Section 3.1 – Preparation of Prescription Product (1) A registrant who prepares a prescription product must ensure that: (a) The prescription product label matches the product information with respect to:
Section 17 Documentation of the identity of any registrant who prepared a prescription product or performed a final check must be in writing, readily available and retained for at least three years after the date on which the prescription product was last dispensed. Section 6.1 Preparation of a Prescription Product (1) A registrant who prepares a prescription product must ensure that: (a) The prescription product label matches the prescription information and the information on the manufacturer’s label with respect to:
(b) The prescription product label matches the prescription information with respect to the matters set out in section 6(8)(a) to (g) (c) The drug is not expired and will not expire within the duration of use; and (d)His or her identity is documented in writing. (2) A pharmacy manager must ensure the record in paragraph (1)(d) is readily available and is retained for at least three years from the date on which the prescription product was last dispensed. |
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NEW STANDARDS FOR FINAL PRODUCT CHECK
Documentation of all activities pertaining to the final check of prescription products must be done in writing, either on paper or electronically. Registrants working in hospital practice are advised that the new standards apply to dispensed prescriptions, prior to release from the pharmacy. The Health Professions Act – Bylaws, Schedule F, Part 2, Section 9 outlines unique standards for bulk/batch drug repackaging and bulk drug compounding. Health Professions Act (HPA) – Bylaws, Schedule F, Part 1 – Community Pharmacy Standards of Practice. Section 2 – Definitions “final check” means ensuring that: (a) The prescription product and the prescription product label match the prescription information and the information on the manufacturer’s label with respect to:
(b) The prescription product label matches the prescription information with respect to the matters set out in section 6(2)(a) to (g); (c) The drug has not expired and will not expire within the duration of use; and (d) A pharmacist has completed a clinical assessment of the prescription after reviewing the patient Section 10 – Dispensing (6) Before dispensing a prescription product, a registrant must perform a final check and record his or her identity in writing (7) A pharmacy manager must ensure the record in paragraph (6) is readily available and retained for at least three years after the last date on which that prescription product was last dispensed. Health Professions Act (HPA) – Bylaws, Schedule F, Part 2 – Hospital Pharmacy Standards of Practice. Section 2 – Definitions “final check” means ensuring that: (a) The prescription product and the prescription product label match the product information with respect to:
(b) The drug is not expired and will not expire within the duration of use; and (c) A pharmacist has completed a clinical assessment of the prescription after reviewing the patient profile. Section 17 Documentation of the identity of any registrant who prepared a prescription product or performed a final check must be in writing, readily available and retained for at least three years after the date on which the prescription product was last dispensed. Section 2 – Definitions “final check” means ensuring that: (a) The prescription product and the prescription product label match the prescription information and the information on the manufacturers label with respect to;
(b) The prescription product label matches the prescription information with respect to the matters set out in section 6(8)(a) to (g); (c) The drug is not expired and will not expire within the duration of use; and (d) A pharmacist has completed a clinical assessment of the prescription after reviewing the patient profile. Section 7 – Dispensing (3) Before dispensing a prescription product, a registrant must perform a final check and must record his or her identity in writing. (4) A pharmacy manager must ensure a record in paragraph (3) is readily available and is retained for at least three years from the date on which the prescription product was last dispensed. |
