1999-2000 Annual Review, August 2000
Pharmacy Services and Consultation
The pharmacists in the Community Programs (CP) Directorate's Pharmacy
Services section provide professional support to all of the First Nations and Inuit Health Branch (FNIHB).
Each of the Directorates within FNIHB accesses their services as
needed.
The Non-Insured Health
Benefits (NIHB) Program which provides pharmacy benefits
to registered First Nations and eligible Inuit clients is the
major user of the pharmacists' services. Pharmacy benefits represented
approximately $ 200 million in 1999-2000, or over one-third of
the NIHB budget. To support this program, the pharmacists' activities
include:
- Policy development and implementation. To maintain the Program's
ongoing objective of providing comprehensive drug coverage, pharmacists
are involved in all levels of policy development and implementation.
- Daily maintenance and annual publication of the Drug
Benefit List. The Drug
Benefit List is a dynamic document that identifies the
current drug benefits as recommended by the Federal Pharmacy
and Therapeutics Committee and approved by the NIHB Program.
Quarterly updates of changes to the list are published as well
as the annual revised list. Pharmacists are also involved in
identifying all products with special reimbursement methods.
- Secretariat to the Federal Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee.
This independent body provides advice on drugs and therapeutics
to six federal departments. Although all of FNIHB can access
the expertise of the Committee, its primary role is in advising
NIHB on the provision of drug benefits. The pharmacy
section systematically reviews new and old drugs, using an
evidence-based approach, and produces reports upon which the
Committee bases its recommendation.
Within CP, the pharmacists' activities include the following:
- Drug Distribution Program (DDP). The pharmacists liaise with
the DDP which supplies drugs and medical supplies and equipment
to nursing stations and health centres. Work on the harmonization
of the DDP catalogue with the NIHB Drug Benefit List continues.
- Pharmacy Standards of Practice in FNIHB Health Facilities.
In 1999-2000, a project in association with the Community Health
Nursing section was initiated to develop pharmacy standards of
practice for FNIHB health facilities. A committee was struck
and standards were drafted and distributed to regions for feedback.
Completion of the document and implementation is scheduled for
2000/2001. Maintenance will be ongoing.
A wide range of drug information and drug utilization requests
are managed by the pharmacy section. Although the majority of this
information is for the internal use of FNIHB, a growing number
of requests, particularly related to drug utilization, are from
external clients. In 1999/2000, pharmacists provided drug utilization
information related to a variety of diseases including diabetes,
tuberculosis, asthma and AIDS.
In 2000/2001, utilization trends will be provided in support of
the ABX Project (a joint initiative of Saskatchewan Health, the
Saskatchewan Pharmaceutical Association and the Health Services
Utilization and Research Commission), which is seeking solutions
for optimal antibiotic use, antibiotic utilization trends.
Ongoing support is also provided to the Drug Utilization Review
Advisory Committee, which has the mandate to review utilization
trends in order to identify areas of concern and to recommend interventions
to optimize drug therapy.
2000-2001 Main Activities and Anticipated Outcomes:
- Complete ongoing review of new entities and drug-related issues and publish the annual Drug Benefit list and quarterly updates.
- Publish the quarterly (or as needed) NIHB Drug Bulletin.
- Complete development of Pharmacy Standards of Practice for FNIHB health facilities .
- Support for the Federal Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee.
- Provide drug information and drug utilization information as required.
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