Annual Report

01

Vision

Better Health through excellence in pharmacy.

Mission

The College regulates the pharmacy profession in the public interest. We set and enforce standards and promote best practices for the delivery of pharmacy care in British Columbia.

Values

The College of Pharmacists of British Columbia’s activities and decisions are based on the following values:

Being professional and ethical
Providing quality service
Building quality relationships
A culture of excellence

The College acknowledges with respect that the College of Pharmacists of BC is located on the unceded and traditional territories of the Coast Salish peoples – sḵwx̱wú7mesh úxwumixw (Squamish), sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh), and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) nations whose historical relationships with the land continue to this day.

02

1/20

Commitment to Cultural Safety and Humility

The College believes that cultural safety and humility are vital for the provision of fair and equal health services, as well as the creation of a healthcare environment free of racism and discrimination, where individuals feel safe and respected.

2/20

COVID-19 Pandemic

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, a pandemic, citing concern over alarming levels of spread and severity across the globe.

3/20

College’s New Strategic Plan

At its September 2019 meeting, the College Board approved four strategic goals and objectives that will guide the College’s 2020/2021 to 2024/2025 Strategic Plan.

4/20

Proposed Changes to Health Professional Regulation in BC

On November 27, 2019, the Honourable Adrian Dix, minister of health, announced proposed changes to the regulation of BC’s health professions, with a focus on increasing transparency and patient safety.

5/20

College Receives Canada Award for Excellence

On November 5, 2019, the College received its Canada Award for Excellence – Silver Certification in the Excellence, Innovation and Wellness^® category.

6/20

2019 Customer Satisfaction Survey

From October 25 – November 22, 2019, the College hosted its second-annual Customer Satisfaction Survey to collect feedback on our performance from our external stakeholders.

7/20

New Safety Measures for Codeine Liquid Preparations

On January 2, 2020, amendments to the Drug Schedules Regulation (DSR) under the Pharmacy Operations and Drug Scheduling Act (PODSA), moving certain Schedule I codeine containing liquid preparations to Schedule 1A, came into effect.

8/20

Amendments to Controlled Prescription Program Forms

At it’s February 2020 meeting, the College Board approved amendments to the Controlled Prescription Program (CPP) forms to create a harmonized form.

9/20

PODSA Modernization: Amended Bylaws Now in Effect

Amendments to modernize the College’s bylaws under the Pharmacy Operations and Drug Scheduling Act (PODSA) came into effect on January 16, 2020.

10/20

New Model Standards for Pharmacy Compounding: Phase 3

Pharmacies and pharmacy professionals were expected to have completed Phase 2 of the new compounding standards by the end of May 2019.

11/20

Patient Relations Program Standard

The Standard helps to protect public safety by providing clearer standards and requirements for dealing with misconduct of a sexual nature.

12/20

Mandatory Medication Incident Reporting

Over the next several years, the College will work to develop standards and criteria, as well as bylaw and policy changes to enable implementation of a mandatory anonymous Medication Incident Reporting Program by 2022/2023.

13/20

Changes to Forms and Prescription Protocol for MAiD

As part of the new reporting process, all provincial and federal reportable information began to be collected through new provincial forms for MAiD.

14/20

Amendments to PPP – 68: Cold Chain Management

At it’s February 2019 meeting, the College Board approved amendments to Professional Practice Policy 68 – Cold Chain Management of Biologicals (PPP-68), including broadening its scope and renaming it ‘PPP-68 – Cold Chain Management.’

15/20

Residential Care

In April 2019, the College’s Practice Review Program began conducting reviews of residential care services provided by pharmacies.

16/20

Posting of Discipline Hearing Notifications

In order to enhance transparency, as of September 1, 2019, the College began to publish citations and Discipline Hearing Notifications as individual items in the ‘News’ section of its website.

17/20

Opioid Overdose Crisis

The opioid overdose crisis continues to be a top priority for the College and other public health organizations across the province.

18/20

College Joins BC Public Advisory Network

On September 25, 2019, the College joined a number of other BC Health Regulators in the formation of the BC Public Advisory Network.

19/20

Providing an Inclusive Experience for 2SLGBTQ+ Patients

At its November 2019 meeting, the Board invited Bex Peterson, nonbinary writer, student, and advocate for 2SLGBTQ+ peoples, to present to the Board guidance and best practices for addressing healthcare challenges faced by the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Bex was also invited to submit a ReadLinks Guest Post to help share these best practices with pharmacy professionals.

20/20

Pharmacy Ownership Transition Period Ends

Pharmacies whose licence expired in June 2019 were the first to complete the post-transition period renewal process.

03

Chair and Registrar's Message

We first want to acknowledge the contributions of pharmacy professionals, other healthcare workers and essential workers as BC responds to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Message from Our Public Board Members

"As public members of the Board of the College of Pharmacists of British Columbia, we represent the perspective of all British Columbians in the governance of pharmacy practice in BC."

Christine Antler

Chair, District 2

Fraser Valley

Anca Cvaci

Vice-Chair, District 6

Urban Hospitals

Alex Dar Santos

District 1

Metropolitan Vancouver

Andrea Silver

District 3

Vancouver Island / Coastal

Steven Hopp

District 4

Kootenay / Okanagan

Michael Ortynsky

District 5

Northern British Columbia

Claire Ishoy

District 7

Community Hospitals

Bal Dhillon

District 8

Pharmacy Technicians

Tracey Hagkull

Government Appointee

Anne Peterson

Government Appointee

Katie Skelton

Government Appointee

Justin Singh Thind

Government Appointee