Professionalism Audit

As a practicing pharmacist in British Columbia I am registered with the BC College of Pharmacists and this is who I am held accountable to. Every year we have to renew our registration and attest to maintaining certain standards, I suppose you could compare this somewhat to the Hippocratic Oath that physicians take. Additionally there is a governing disciplinary body that implements sanctions/restrictions on pharmacists if practice standards are not met. It is through this body that standards and quality for pharmacists are established, maintained and enforced. In terms of liability and insurance, because I work in the hospital setting I am covered through my employer. There is additional insurance that can be purchased if I was to work in a community pharmacy setting or in manufacturing/industry.

Working as a hospital pharmacist allows me to work in an interdisciplinary setting, which truly is a wonderful experience. The other professions that I work most closely with are physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses and pharmacy technicians and assistants. Most of these interactions happen on a one-on-one basis through phone calls or meeting in person and the nature of the interactions are usually in terms of recommending changes to a patient’s medication therapy to optimize it, avoiding interactions and treating a condition that is either not yet being treated, being under treated or being over treated. Additionally, I also work with occupational therapists, physiotherapists, lab technicians and social workers, so I really do work with a diverse group of health professionals. In some areas there are interdisciplinary rounds which is where health professionals from different areas meet in order to go over patient cases. This is an excellent opportunity to learn from each other and other professions, and allows the best possible outcome for the patient.

Recently the hospital I work at implemented Nurse Practitioners and I was lucky enough to have one assigned to the ward I work on. Their scope of practice is basically equivalent to a that of a physician, which allows them to practice in a variety of settings. I will admit that I was quite hesitant of this new role at first, however it has allowed me to make more impactful changes for patients in a timelier manner which is amazing to be a part of. It also illustrates the importance of constantly moving our health care system and ways of practicing forward, which is crucial in any healthcare setting. In areas where there is a physician shortage, the implementation of Nurse Practitioners may be able to help improve patient access to healthcare and therefore afford better health outcomes for patients. 

This article from Stats Canada that outlines patient access to a regular medical doctor for more information.