Is a Single Provincial Pharmacy Program Beneficial for the Advancement of Pharmacy Practice?

Management of Hospital Formularies in Ontario: Challenges within a Local Health Integration Network

“…17 Despite the advantages of centralizing the formulary review process, respondents were wary that institution-specific population needs or priorities might not be adequately addressed. In a debate about centralizing formulary management and pharmacy services in general, Slobodan and others 18 outlined the advantages of taking a broader perspective, including consistency in pharmacy services, funding, and access to medications and drug information resources. However, Wilson 19 raised concerns that a centralized process might impede a hospital's ability to respond to the needs of local patients in a timely manner or to be innovative with the adoption of new drugs or reallocation of resources; he noted, however, that processes currently in place could alleviate these concerns.…”

Of Silos and Systems: The Issue of Regionalizing Health Care

“…8,9 Does a single regionalized pharmacy department help or harm the advancement of pharmacy practice? Taking a broader perspective, has regionalization of the health care system fulfilled the promises of cost containment, better responsiveness to and accountability for population needs, and more public involvement in your province?…”