Every summer, pharmacies across the province hire new graduates to join their pharmacy teams. Licensees are reminded that if your pharmacy hires a new pharmacist graduate, you must ensure your new team member has completed the necessary steps before they are permitted to practise independently.
Before practising independently, new pharmacists must complete the following steps.
- New graduates must first be admitted to the provisional register.
- Please note that graduates from the University of Alberta must now apply to the provisional pharmacist register. This requirement came into effect in 2024.
- Once they are provisional pharmacists, they must
- pass their Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (PEBC) exams,
- log into the structured practical training (SPT) portal and complete the mandatory online SPT program, and
- apply to the clinical pharmacist register once they have completed the entry-to-practice requirements for pharmacists.
Pharmacists require confirmation from ACP that their application to the clinical pharmacist register has been approved before they are permitted to practise independently.
ACP endeavours to process applications as quickly as possible, however due to the volume of applications received, processing may take 15 business days. Processing delays can be minimized by ensuring all entry-to-practice requirements are met prior to submitting an application. It is also good practice to ensure all information included with the application is accurate and complete.
It is the licensee’s responsibility to ensure that the regulated professionals working in their pharmacy have valid, active registration with ACP and that their pharmacy team includes a pharmacist from the clinical or courtesy register. Registration can be confirmed by visiting ACP’s public register at abpharmacy.ca.
