NLPB Office Closed to the Public
As per current public health guidelines, the NLPB office is currently closed to the public and all staff members are working from home.
Email remains the best method for contacting NLPB. For staff contact information, please visit our website: https://staging.nlpb.ca/contact-us/ or email general inquiries to inforx@nlpb.ca.
COVID-19 Pharmacy Service Disruptions
If your pharmacy has been affected by the recent increase in COVID-19 cases in the province, please refer to NLPB’s COVID-19 Guidance for Pharmacy Professionals webpage for guidance on navigating pharmacy service disruptions.
Please note that the pharmacist-in-charge should notify NLPB if/when they have pharmacy staff members that test positive for COVID-19 so we can be aware of the situation and any potential impacts on pharmacy services, such as a change in hours of operation or temporary closure. Patients should be notified of the changes to pharmacy services at the earliest opportunity, and continuity of care must be considered.
COVID-19 Testing and Isolation Guidelines for Health Professionals
As per the recent revision of the criteria for PCR testing and isolation, any person that is a close contact of a positive COVID-19 case and has symptoms of COVID-19 should consider themselves a positive case and follow public health direction. However, persons who work in health care can book a PCR test if they have been a close contact of a person who tested positive for COVID-19 regardless of whether or not they are exhibiting symptoms.
As per the public health guidance, a close contact is defined as any person exposed to the individual while they were infectious (72 hours before symptoms started). Exposed means anyone who:
- was within six feet of the individual for at least 15 minutes while indoors
- was nearby when they coughed or sneezed
- cares for you or you care for at home
- touched, hugged, or kissed you
Inter-provincial Prescription Transfer of Controlled Substances – Health Canada Subsection 56(1) Class Exemption
The Health Canada Subsection 56(1) Class Exemption for Pharmacists Prescribing and Providing Controlled Substances in Canada was updated in November 2021 to permit inter-provincial prescription transfers.
Pharmacists can now transfer a prescription for a controlled substance to another pharmacist within Canada for the duration of the Health Canada exemption. NLPB is seeking clarification from the provincial government regarding accepting out-of-province transfers as it pertains to the tamper-resistant prescription drug pad program (TRPP). In the meantime, all pharmacists should exercise their professional judgment when filling prescriptions.
Please note that only pharmacists who are authorized to prescribe by NLPB can continue prescriptions for controlled substances under the exemption.
For more information, check out NLPB’s updated FAQ:
https://staging.nlpb.ca/media/NLPB-FAQ-on-Health-Canada-Exemption-Dec2021rev.pdf
Please reach out to the Department of Health and Community Services with any specific inquiries you may have.
Project ECHO NL: Opioid Use Disorder – Upcoming Sessions
Project ECHO NL: Opioid Use Disorder, is a virtual community advancing care and treatment for opioid use disorder in Newfoundland and Labrador. The goal is to help primary care providers and their teams build capacity in the treatment and management of opioid use disorder.
This project offers free, virtual learning sessions using an interactive, web-based platform to link healthcare providers with an interdisciplinary team of mentors with expertise in managing substance use care.
ECHO sessions are designed around case-based learning and mentorship and support healthcare providers in gaining the knowledge and skills required to provide needed services in their regions.
The primary audience for Project ECHO NL: Opioid Use Disorder is prescribers (family physicians and nurse practitioners) and pharmacists. The secondary audience is other healthcare professionals providing care for individuals with opioid use disorder, including registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, social workers, and addictions counsellors.
Upcoming Sessions
Cycle 1 will include 11 sessions held every three weeks between October 2021 and May 2022.
Session 4: Trauma-Informed Care in Addictions Practice
January 11, 2021 – 12:00–1:00PM (NST)
*This session was postponed due to the IT outage. If you are registered for the session when it was originally scheduled (Nov. 2, 2021), you do not need to register again.*
Registration is free but required. Registration is completed on a per-session basis.
Session 4 Registration Closed
ECHO sessions are one hour, held every three weeks on a rotating schedule of Tuesdays from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. NDT.
| Session 3 | November 23, 2021 | 8:30 a.m.– 9:30 a.m. NDT |
| Session 4 | December 14, 2021 | 12:00 p.m.– 1:00 p.m. NDT |
| Session 5 | January 11, 2022 | 8:30 a.m.– 9:30 a.m. NDT |
| Session 6 | February 1, 2022 | 12:00 p.m.– 1:00 p.m. NDT |
| Session 7 | February 22, 2022 | 8:30 a.m.– 9:30 a.m. NDT |
| Session 8 | March 15, 2022 | 12:00 p.m.– 1:00 p.m. NDT |
| Session 9 | April 5, 2022 | 8:30 a.m.– 9:30 a.m. NDT |
| Session 10 | April 26, 2022 | 12:00 p.m.– 1:00 p.m. NDT |
| Session 11 | May 17, 2022 | 8:30 am – 9:30 am NDT |
More information about Project ECHO NL: Opioid Use Disorder, including frequently asked questions, can be found online here.
Regular reminders
- Registrant Contact Information – Registrants are responsible for ensuring that the contact information on their registrant profile, including email address and practice site, is accurate at all times. The NLPB primarily uses email communication to send newsletters, renewal reminders, practice site assessment information, professional development audit information, calls for interest for committees, and other alerts. If the email address on file is incorrect, important information may be missed and/or disclosed to the wrong person. If your contact information changes, please log into the NLPB Online Registrant Portal to update your file with your new contact information as soon as you can.
- Forgot Your Password? – You can retrieve your NLPB Online Registrant Portal password at any time. Under the Login box, click the message that says, “Forgot your password? Click here to restore it.” On the next screen, enter your NLPB username, if you know it, or your email address. Click “Retrieve.” In a few minutes, you will receive an email with your username and password. Once you are logged into your profile, you can change your password.
- Receipts & Invoices – NLPB’s Online Registrant Portal maintains all receipts created by the system. If for any reason, you need a receipt or to view an invoice, you can do so from your registrant profile. Once logged in, click on “Renewal Other/Invoices” and then select either “view invoice” or “print invoice” next to the one you are interested in.
This e-newsletter contains information on a wide variety of topics intended to enhance the practice of pharmacy in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. As it is published and circulated to all registrants on a monthly basis, it is the expectation of NLPB that all registrants are aware of the matters contained therein.