Senior pharmacy students are supporting Ontario’s health-care system in the fight against COVID-19. These students are completing their rotations, a requirement for senior pharmacy students where they are placed in health-care sites across the province for six months.
Here are some of their stories:
Lee Pham in the Kitchener-Waterloo Region
"Working at the Preston Medical Pharmacy for my first rotation meant that I experienced those initial changes as we adapted our procedures to respond to COVID-19. I worked with my preceptor Nathan Ricketts (Rx2016 alum) to help implement these changes, the most substantial of which was closing pharmacy doors to walk-in patients and providing our services over the phone.
Before the pandemic, I was developing relationships with patients in order to provide optimal medication management. My biggest fear was losing this connection and having difficulty following up with patients. However, I quickly saw that patients were calling in to speak to me directly about concerns — weekly or daily sometimes! And they were always open to phone-consultations as well as my recommendations, even without the face-to-face interaction. I also developed relationships with new patients just by talking over the phone.
I learned that yes, healthcare is rapidly changing, but pharmacy is always ready to adapt and lead. The pandemic really showed this. For example, Preston Medical Pharmacy provides an anti-coagulation clinic where patients visit for point-of-care tests and the pharmacist adjusts the dosage immediately instead of getting blood-work at the laboratory. In order to reduce the number of patients entering the store, we adapted to extending appointment dates (when safe for the patient), offering more at-home INR services, and eventually doing curbside INR right from the patient's car. I worked alongside a Waterloo Pharmacy co-op student (Frankie Vrljic) from March-April, and we collaborated to ensure patients were getting their INR tests accordingly."
Lee Pham, her preceptor Nathan Ricketts, and Frankie Vrljic (co-op student) are in this photo along with our Preston Medical colleagues
Emily Williams in Sudbury Region
"My first two rotation blocks took place at Medical Pharmacies where I worked alongside Clinical Consultant Pharmacist Sue Burns, servicing the long-term care and nursing homes throughout Northern Ontario.
One of the biggest challenges we faced was ensuring continuity of care in the long-term care homes, while transitioning to a primarily virtual-care model. Working collaboratively with nursing staff and prescribers, we’ve developed creative solutions using technology to provide safe and effective patient care, just in a slightly different format than we previously used.
The pandemic has taught me about the versatility of virtual healthcare and the critical role technology can play in our healthcare system. Before the pandemic, a lot of the healthcare services provided were based on in-person interactions, but as the pandemic caused us to increase the use of telemedicine, a lot has had to change in a very short period of time. I am excited to see what aspects of this expanded virtual healthcare will continue after the pandemic resolves, and how that will improve services provided to patients in more remote regions such as Northern Ontario.
Collaborative Medication Review meeting for a long-term care home in Sudbury. These reviews are held quarterly for all residents with input from nursing, pharmacy and prescribers to optimize resident therapy.
Top - left to right: Lisa Quesnelle (Assistant Director of Care for Extendicare York), myself, Emily Williams (PharmD Rotation Student), Sue Burns (Clinical Consultant Pharmacist for Medical Pharmacies, and UW Preceptor)
Bottom - left to right: Jessica Kovacs (Assistant Director of Care for Extendicare York), Nastaran Keshmiri (PharmD Rotation Student), Dr. Andrew Kuchtaruk (Physician).