this post was submitted on 16 Sep 2024
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Ontario

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Ontario is proposing to further expand pharmacists' scope of practice by adding to the list of minor ailments they can assess, allowing them to administer more vaccines and order some lab tests.

'Pharmacists are not doctors,' OMA says But doctors are pushing back on the scope expansions.

"The bottom line here is that pharmacists are not doctors," said Dr. Dominik Nowak, president of the Ontario Medical Association. "Doctors are trained for years and thousands of hours to diagnose and treat conditions."

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[–] streetfestival@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Pharmacists ordering lab tests (bloodwork) is a pretty radical expansion of their practice

Most pharmacists I'm pretty sure work for private, mostly corporate companies. This is another effort to further privatize healthcare

[–] ryan213@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Do people actually go to pharmacists for ailments? I only go to pick up prescriptions.

[–] Pixel@lemmy.ca 5 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Yes, they do. People were already going to pharmacists for years in Ontario to get prescription refills for non-controlled substances. Sometimes you know that you just need a drug to treat your problem or you need a contraceptive. You know that there's a specific acne cream that works for you, or you need a NSAID for your joint pain. There's no point clogging up the already backlogged healthcare system for In demand healthcare professions such as physicians and nurse practitioners when you have another oversaturated health profession (pharmacy) that you can leverage.

[–] ryan213@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 month ago

Cool. Good to know!

[–] RoquetteQueen@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 month ago

I'm prone to UTIs and my doctor is two hours away.

[–] a9249@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 month ago

Good. I shouldn't need to wait 3 weeks for an appointment and 4 hours for the doctor being late for a goddamned prescription update and blood work order.