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Pharmacy

The Pharmacy department, which is made up of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and assistants, encourages an open and positive atmosphere of learning, which proactively includes our patients in, and increases awareness about, their care.
 

What We Do

The Pharmacy Department at Whitehorse General Hospital plays several important roles on your health care team:

  • Hospital pharmacists work closely with physicians, nurses, patients and other members of the care team to help ensure your medication plan is safe, effective and appropriate. They provide 24/7 support to patient care areas in all three Yukon hospitals. Pharmacists make recommendations based on patient-specific factors such as clinical condition, kidney function, ability to swallow, and whether your medications are safe to take together, to name a few.
  • Our pharmacists work with patients to ensure they understand the medications they are taking and why it is important they take them. When a pharmacist is involved in a patient’s treatment plan, it helps shorten the duration of a patient’s stay in the hospital.
  • Our pharmacists prepare, assist with and/or oversee specialized treatment areas such as chemotherapy, parental nutrition and outpatient IV treatments
  • Our pharmacy technicians and assistants are involved in speaking to patients when they are admitted to Whitehorse General Hospital about medications taken at home to ensure all members of the healthcare team have an accurate list of medications. They also play an important role in preparing and checking medications distributed to patients in the hospital.

 

Medication Safety

Knowing about your medications, talking about them with your health provider and asking questions will help you take an active role in your health care.

When you come to the hospital, it is important to bring all of your medications from home along with an up-to-date list with the dose, the time you take it and what you take it for. This includes prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications like Tylenol, vitamins, supplements and herbal therapies. Both our hospital team and our patients have a very important role to play in sharing information about medication. This helps to ensure you are treated with the right medication.

What to Expect

When you come to hospital, you can expect that the physician, nurse, pharmacist or pharmacy technician/assistant will ask you questions about what medications you are taking, including any prescription, over-the-counter or herbal treatments. This will happen several times during your stay. 

This process is called "medication reconciliation" and is meant to establish your best possible medication history and ensure this is communicated clearly at all the different points during your stay in hospital and when you are ready to leave.
 

Additional Information

Patient Safety
Medication Safety and You (PDF)
Medication Reconciliation Card (PDF)