Pharmacists warned about faxed prescription problems

The Saskatchewan College of Pharmacists is warning its members to be careful with certain prescriptions that are being transmitted through a private company.

Remicade prescriptions are being intercepted by co-ordinators working for BioAdvance before being sent to a pharmacist.

"We’re concerned with the integrity of that prescription for patient safety reasons," said Ray Joubert, the college of pharmacists’ registrar.

Remicade is a prescription drug used to treat conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. It is administered through injection by a health-care professional, including in private clinics owned by companies such as BioAdvance.

In some cases, the signed prescription for Remicade is being sent to the co-ordinators, who then fax it to the pharmacy. That doesn’t meet the college of pharmacists’ guidelines for the transmission of prescriptions, the college warned in its most recent newsletter.

"We are concerned and uncertain as to whether alterations are made to the prescription once the physician has signed the form," the newsletter said. "This is akin to a physician signing a blank Rx pad then giving it to the nurse to fill in."

The college has had reports of the same prescription being faxed repeatedly, as well as reports of cases where the prescribed dosage changed but the faxed prescription did not.

Marc Osborne, a spokesperson for BioAdvance parent company Merck Frosst Canada, said the company was aware of the college’s concerns.

"We have met with the college late in 2010," he said in an email. "Since then we implemented a solution that we believe meets its requirement."

Osborne declined to provide details on the solution.

However, Joubert said despite a lot of communication between the college of pharmacists and BioAdvance, the response from the company has not been very helpful.

"It’s been kind of a non-response clarifying what their process is and, generally, not really responding to our concerns," Joubert said.

The college is encouraging pharmacists to ensure the Remicade prescriptions remain valid and that they have been transmitted properly. Proper transmission includes the prescription being faxed directly from the physician’s office to the pharmacy or the patient bringing in a prescription with the physician’s signature in ink.