Posted • Last updated
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Commitment: Short-term
Connection method: Virtual
Open to Provincial Region
Last updated
Volunteer Opportunity
The UBC Innovation Support Unit in partnership with the Ministry of Health is exploring what patients and family doctors in British Columbia think about the recently announced changes to community pharmacist’s scope of practice (what they can do). These changes include the potential to diagnose and treat minor health conditions. We are seeking three patient partners between the ages of 19-40 for 30-minute interviews to understand how these changes may impact patients and their access to care.
Lead Organization/Department
UBC Department of Family Practice, Innovation Support Unit
Aim
• To identify how the proposed changes to pharmacist scope of practice can be implemented in a way that supports patient-centred, longitudinal care.
• Patient partners will share concerns and benefits they may see with these changes, as well as how they may choose to use pharmacist services.
Level of Engagement
This opportunity is at the level of consult on the spectrum of engagement. The promise to you is that the health care partner will listen to and acknowledge your ideas and concerns, and provide feedback on how your input affected the decision.
Eligibility
Open to volunteers from across the province who:
• Are between 19 and 40 years of age.
• Are comfortable talking about how and where they seek medical advice.
• Have access to a telephone or computer for videoconferencing.
The interviewee does not need to have a family doctor or regular family practitioner.
Logistics
• Number of vacancies: 3
• Date/Time: Between December 5th – 16th 2022, or January 3rd – 20th 2023. Interviews to take place between the hours of 8:00am – 5:00pm.
• Commitment: 20–30-minute telephone or zoom call.
• Location: Telephone or via Zoom
Reimbursement
Patient partners will be reimbursed for their time with a $50 gift card of their choice.
Background
In the fall of 2022, the BC Ministry of Health (MoH) announced upcoming changes to the scope of practice for community pharmacists, including the potential for pharmacists to diagnose and treat minor ailments. The MoH are currently making decisions on how these changes will be implemented, with a goal of Spring 2023 to implement some of the proposed changes. The goal of this project is understanding how these changes interact with primary care, and how they will impact primary care providers and patients.
In addition to interviewing patients, we will also be interviewing doctors, nurse practitioners, policy makers, and pharmacists.
