While hospitals go through an accreditation process every four years, hospital pharmacies go through this accreditation even more frequently; Bridgepoint pharmacy must pass the Ontario College of Pharmacists (OCP) stringent process every two years, and Mount Sinai Hospital does this every year, due to their sterile compounding facilities. This summer, both pharmacies went through this assessment, and both sites passed with flying colours.
The emphasis this year was on the processes in the pharmacies for filling prescriptions, compounding, handling and distributing hazardous medications as well as considering how units for store, administer and process narcotics. Mount Sinai’s Emergency Department and 4 North (Medical Rehab) at Bridgepoint were also involved in the assessment.
The OCP Hospital Advisor who completed the assessment commended Pharmacy on their commitment to continuous quality improvement, noted how impressed she was with the many patient safety initiatives that have been implemented since the last accreditation, and also recognized the positive culture and team work that she observed.
“It’s great to see our commitment to working with other areas of the hospital and creating an efficient and effective system for safe medication being recognized,” says Janice Takata-Shewchuk, senior director of Pharmacy at Sinai Health System. “Being able to share the ways we collaborate, on both sites, was a great highlight for me. I’m proud of everyone’s work throughout this process.”
Congrats to everyone in Pharmacy, and to everyone who participated in the accreditation, for this achievement.
Pharmacy at Sinai Health: A quick look
Over 95 people work in the pharmacies across both Mount Sinai and Bridgepoint, including pharmacists, technicians and students.
Over 5 million doses of medication are dispensed annually across both Bridgepoint and Mount Sinai.
Pharmacy technicians safely prepare, label and distribute medications throughout the hospital. This includes preparation of suspensions, ointments and sterile products.
Pharmacists ensure safety through review of patients’ home medications, safety and efficacy of inpatient medication orders, counselling of patients on their medications, and reconciliation of medications at transitions of care.