opioids
non-cancer pain. The guideline is at http://nationalpaincentre.mcmaster.ca/opioid/. We also urge physicians to be
aware of our Prescribing Drugs policy at www.cpso.on.ca
The Patch4Patch program works as a collaboration
between physicians and pharmacists. Under the current Bill, physicians must note on all prescriptions for
fentanyl patches where the patient intends to fill the
prescription (i.e. which pharmacy), and the physician
must notify the pharmacy in advance that the prescription is coming.
Under the proposed regulations, physicians will be
required to note on each new prescription for fentanyl
that it is the first prescription they have written for a
specific patient. This lets the pharmacist know that the
patient will not have patches to return when filling the
prescription.
The physician must be “reasonably satisfied” that the
patient has not already received or is not already receiving fentanyl from another prescriber, based on their
discussion with the patient and any other information
available to them.
Subsequent prescriptions can only be filled by the
pharmacist if the used patches from the previous prescription are returned; however, there are limited exceptions. Whenever fewer patches are returned than were
prescribed, the pharmacist must notify the physician
Unlike other opioids, abuse of fentanyl (by smoking,
burning, or cutting it up) destroys the patch. In theory,
a patient who has abused or sold their patches will not
be able to return them to the pharmacy.
We will provide more information once the regulations are in force.
MD
May 2, 1886
The First Council Meeting
The Council consisted of 20 doctors representing Upper Canada’s
counties and medical schools, and it was responsible for licensing
every physician in the province, setting standards for the medical curriculum, and administering the qualifying exams to medical students.
Photo: The College’s first Registrar, Dr.
Henry Strange, who served from 1866
to 1872. Photo from the CPSO Archives,
PC1688.
24
At that first meeting, the Council elected the first Registrar, Dr. Henry
Strange, and the first President, Dr. John Robertson Dickson. Dr.
George L. Beard, from Oxford County, is the first doctor registered.
photo: Courtesy of Toronto Public Health
On May 2, 1866, the General Council of Medical Education and Registration (GCME) of Upper Canada met in Toronto for the first time. The
GMCE would be reformed into the College of Physicians and Surgeons
of Ontario three years later in 1869 through a revised Medical Act.
Dialogue Issue 2, 2016
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