ACP’s Licensee Education Program (LEP) was launched in two phases—Part A on June 4, 2020, and Part B and the Proprietor Self-Assessment on September 1, 2020. The mandatory educational program for licensees and proprietor’s agents was designed to help current, new, and potential licensees to
- develop an understanding of the licensee’s legal expectations and responsibilities involved in operating a pharmacy, particularly regarding the authority, responsibility, and accountability of licensees, in ACP’s regulatory framework;
- demonstrate the ability to use relevant resources to update and maintain knowledge about legislation and standards for operating a pharmacy; and
- develop understanding about this managerial role including professionalism, creating effective and supportive work environments, leadership skills, relationship building and conflict management, and supporting staff (e.g., learning opportunities, mentoring, facilitating collaborative relationships).
Since October 1, 2020, all pharmacists applying to become a licensee, regardless of previous experience, have been required to complete Parts A and B of the LEP. All existing licensees were required to complete Part B of the LEP by May 31, 2021.
Between June 4, 2020, and July 21, 2021, there were 1,890 learners who completed the LEP, including 1,153 who completed both parts of the program. Data indicates that many of those who completed both parts of the program were current licensees at the time and went beyond what was required for 2021-2022 pharmacy licence renewal.
When surveyed about the LEP, most participants (more than 70 per cent) agreed that they were able to meet the learning objectives of the program and that the program was valuable, usable, and well organized.
Participants also reported significant increases in their perceived confidence about their knowledge of the legislative requirements and standards for operating a pharmacy, use of resources to maintain their legislative knowledge, and understanding of their role as a licensee in terms of leadership and professionalism.
Overall, 97 per cent of participants reported that their educational needs were addressed through the LEP.
The participants reported that the program was a valuable foundational learning experience for new licensees and a useful review tool for experienced licensees. Participants identified that one of the key strengths of the program was the relevance and applicability of the content. Several participants noted that the scenarios and case-studies were particularly insightful for the application of the program content.
For the participants (three per cent) who reported that their educational needs were not met, they shared concerns about overlap of the program content with previous training, challenges with program design, and the time investment for completion of the program.
The ACP team has completed a review of the LEP with a goal of minimizing redundancy, correcting errors and broken hyperlinks, and making minor revisions to content. ACP is working with the Office of Professional Development and Educational Scholarship at Queen’s University to improve functionality of the program and enhance user experience.
Thank you to all who have participated in the LEP and who took the time to complete the survey. ACP encourages all pharmacy professionals to take both Part A and Part B of the program to gain further understanding about the role and responsibilities of the licensee.
