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On this edition of ‘Today in B.C.’ host Peter McCully talks with Pindy Janda, Vice President of the B.C. Pharmacy Association about the shortage of children’s medications and new prescriptive powers for pharmacists.
Janda says when it comes to the shortages of children’s pain and fever meds, it’s a combination of things that have resulted in a perfect storm for demand of the products.
‘We’ve had increased demand since the pandemic started in 2020 and then this year has just been unprecedented with numbers of patients getting the flu and the RSV infection, then the caregivers end up getting sick after the children are.’ says Pindy.
Pharmacists can offer advice with using alternatives and generic brands and Janda offers insight into the different symptoms and treatments for Covid, RSV and Influenza.
More than one million people in the province are without a family doctor, this past October Pharmacists received expanded powers to extend prescriptions and this spring pharmacists will be able to prescribe for minor ailments, something the B.C. Pharmacy Association has been lobbying the Provincial Government for.
Janda said, ‘Alberta’s had prescribing rights and expanded scope of practice for years. They were ahead of us with administering vaccinations at pharmacies, when you see it happening next door, it’s very much what about us? We have the same standard of education.’
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