It’s human nature to leave things to the last minute. We’ve all done it. Often, it can create unwanted stress to meet a deadline. So, why do we do it?
Pharmacists and pharmacy licensees: you know where we’re going here. The deadline for renewing practice permits and pharmacy licences is Friday, May 31 at 11:59 p.m. MT. That’s two and a half weeks away! What’s important to remember is that this year, you’ll be renewing using myACP for the first time.
So far, 23 per cent of pharmacists have renewed their practice permit, nine per cent of licensees have completed their pharmacy licence renewal, and another 32 per cent of licensees have submitted their pharmacy licence renewal and are awaiting review.
Our advice?
Don’t wait until the last minute! What if your computer crashes on the evening of May 31? What if it’s the middle of the night and there’s nowhere to turn for help? Why create this stress for yourself? Log in to myACP as soon as it’s possible for you and renew your registration with the college.
“It’s important to not wait until the last day or two to renew,” said Debbie Lee, ACP’s Registration Director. “Because it’s a new renewal process and a new system, there will be some additional steps. You need to ensure you have access to the new system. But once you’re logged in, it should be straight forward. Due to the higher volume of calls and emails we are receiving, you should expect that it will take a few days for our team to respond if you do encounter any issues while attempting to log in or renew your registration.”
ACP’s registration team has received calls from individuals who get stuck at certain points of the renewal process, whether it’s logging in to myACP for the first time or knowing where to find everything once they’re in the system. The good news is there are plenty of resources available to guide you.
“We’ve done our best to provide all the information you need through emails and on our website to support you with the renewal process,” said Debbie. “The best advice I can give is to review the guides we have available (see below). Each question we have received so far is answered in these guides.”
These final pointers may help you get started:
- Don’t use a mobile device or tablet when renewing your registration. myACP is only supported by using a laptop or desktop computer.
- If logging into myACP for the first time, don’t click on “request access.” If you are a registrant of the college, you already have a myACP profile. All you need to do is establish a password, which is achieved by clicking “forgot your password.”
- Make sure you complete every step in the process, including submitting your payment (the final step). If we don’t receive your payment, you haven’t renewed your registration.
- Licensees: renewing your pharmacy licence is a big change because only licensees can submit a renewal application and you will need to work in coordination with your proprietor’s representative. Use the how-to guide!
- It’s important to remember the following terminology (which comes from provincial legislation):
- A practice permit is your permit to practise as a pharmacist.
- A licence is the licence to operate a pharmacy. Only licensees can hold a pharmacy licence. Licensees need to renew both your pharmacy licence and your practice permit by May 31.
- Remember, myACP is a new system. It looks different and feels different than our old system. Give yourself some extra time to get familiar with it.
- If you haven’t started your prescribed learning activity for the Continuing Competence Program yet, don’t delay—the activity is a limited podcast series titled Pharmacy Perspectives: Providing Safer Spaces and will take at least five hours for you to complete.
- If you have any questions, please review the Renewing your practice permit guide, Renewing your pharmacy licence guide, and the myACP Q&A guide before contacting ACP. The odds are very strong that you will find the answers to your questions there.
- If you are considering moving to an inactive status, refer to the Pharmacists: moving to an inactive status guide for more information.
Keep in mind if you do not successfully submit your online registration renewal by 11:59 p.m. MT on May 31, you are subject to a non-compliance fee. Why risk it? Renew today!
