Shoppers Drug Mart can now help deliver healthcare in Halton.
This morning, Shoppers Drug Mart opened its pharmacy care clinic at 1450 Headon Rd. in Burlington - one of only two in the province.
The clinics, along with two additional locations due to open this year in Georgetown and Alberta, are possible thanks to the expanded scope of practice for pharmacists. The company didn't say which Georgetown store will be home to the clinic.
Through the opening of the care clinics, the company hopes to help alleviate some of the strains plaguing the current healthcare system. At the clinic, patients will be able to access a range of services, including assessment and treatment of common ailments, in a familiar walk-in clinic setting.
Pharmacists can diagnose and help treat things such as urinary tract infections, cold sores, hemorrhoids, allergies, colds, pink eye, insect bites and tick bites.
Shoppers Drug Mart president Jeff Leger said the provincial government was instrumental in helping the pharmacy care clinic move forward.
“They are the driving force behind this,” he said, adding they’ve been working for almost a year on the project. “Access to primary care has been an issue and this is an innovative and collaborative approach.”
He said there was a lot of care and concern with the patients' needs front and centre at the pharmacy, where they can be assessed and treated on site.
In Burlington, three patient rooms are available to provide private, one-on-one consultations. The largest of the three rooms is specifically for families with small children and includes a fun television screen where children can play a find-the-object farm game. In addition, they can change the lighting in the child-friendly room to help keep people calm and reduce nerves, especially when it comes to vaccines. It also has an infant weight scale.
Customers can refill medications on their own, through the use of lockers. Secure lockers are available through the PC health app to allow people to get their medications in a fast and efficient manner, which helps to free up the pharmacists’ time.
The other pharmacy care clinic is located in Mississauga’s Meadowvale area.
