Police agencies in both Edmonton and Calgary continue to report a higher-than-normal volume of robberies taking place in community pharmacies. In some instances, the robberies have included violence or threats of violence involving pharmacy team members. These instances can often be traumatic for pharmacy team members and patients present in the pharmacy.
ACP is aware of and concerned about the recent trends in pharmacy robberies. In February 2021, the college developed a new section on robberies and burglaries on our website that provides the following information for pharmacy teams:
- how to prevent robberies and burglaries from occurring at your pharmacy through education, physical changes to the pharmacy, security equipment, and changes in processes and practices;
- what to do during a robbery;
- what to do after a robbery or burglary; and
- reference materials from the Edmonton Police Service, Calgary Police Service, RCMP, and the Government of Alberta.
- Please note you must login to the ACP website to view the pharmacy robberies and burglaries section.
ACP encourages you to take all recommended prevention measures possible including reducing stock on hand where possible, to keep your pharmacy, your team members, and your patients safe. Police agencies have also indicated that labelling your drugs with the name of the pharmacy helps with investigations when drugs are recovered.
If your pharmacy is robbed during business hours or broken into after hours, ACP encourages pharmacy teams to report the event to the college on a voluntary basis. Within our pharmacy robberies and burglaries section, you will find an online form to provide ACP with details of the event (similar to the forgery reporting form). Reporting robberies and burglaries will allow ACP to securely share information with your colleagues that could help them prevent future events. The information collected may help the college with future policy decisions.
ACP encourages all pharmacy teams to contact their local police service and invite them to visit your pharmacy. Police can review the preventative measures you already have in place and provide advice to make your pharmacy more secure and safer for you and your patients.
