Quotas in pharmacy: Initial survey findings in Saskatchewan are 'aligned' with Ontario's results

Preliminary results of a survey on corporate pressures experienced by pharmacists in Saskatchewan are “aligned” with the findings of a similar survey conducted in March in Ontario, according to the registrar of the Saskatchewan College of Pharmacy Professionals.“I can confirm that our survey closed on April 3, and we had a significant response from our registrants—about 25%,” Jeana Wendel wrote in an email to Pharmacy Practice + Business. “Our preliminary findings are aligned with those of (Ontario College of Pharmacists), however more review and analysis are still required.”The survey results will be passed on to the college’s council for review and discussion on June 5 and 6, added Wendel, who did not provide details on the college’s findings.Saskatchewan is the second professional regulator in the country to probe reports that certain pharmacies are pressuring their pharmacists to conduct more clinical services. About a month earlier, the Ontario College of Pharmacists had conducted a survey that drew a record-high response from nearly 4,300 pharmacy professionals.Read: Prairie pharmacists get questioned on quotasBritish Columbia has since followed suit. On April 9, the College of Pharmacists of British Columbia issued a notice asking its members to complete a survey “to help us better understand workplace pressures or directives that may challenge their professional integrity by asking them to practice in ways that do not align with professional and ethical standards.”The B.C. survey, which closes on April 21 just before midnight, includes questions adapted from those used in surveys conducted by the Ontario and Saskatchewan colleges.The Ontario survey results, which were released on March 26, found that seven in 10 respondents had experienced pressure from their employer to provide more clinical services.Read: Are medication review quotas the new traffic tickets?Medication reviews were cited as the biggest driver of corporate pressure on Ontario pharmacists, and a large majority of respondents named Shoppers Drug Mart as the place where they felt this pressure.Wendel did not respond to a follow-up asking if Saskatchewan’s preliminary survey results mirrored these top findings in Ontario. Read: 'Counsel has been retained': Ontario college takes zero-tolerance stance against corporate pressure on pharmacists

Quotas in pharmacy: Initial survey findings in Saskatchewan are 'aligned' with Ontario's results

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