The Alberta College of Pharmacy (ACP) is governed by the provincial Health Professions Act (HPA) and is responsible for regulating pharmacy practice in a way that protects and serves the public interest. Unlike other health regulatory colleges, whose responsibilities are wholly contained within the HPA, ACP also has the responsibility of regulating pharmacies through the Pharmacy and Drug Act. ACP performs our regulatory role by developing, maintaining, and enforcing professional regulations, standards of practice, and a code of ethics. ACP is accountable to our governing Council, which includes pharmacist and pharmacy technician members, as well as public members to ensure Albertans’ views are considered.
ACP has four major functional areas that contribute to the regulation of pharmacy practice and the operation of licensed pharmacies:
To support the work ACP does to regulate pharmacy, the college also employs administrative staff, including an IT team and a communications team.
Healthy Albertans through excellence in pharmacy practice.
The Alberta College of Pharmacy governs pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacies in Alberta to serve, support, and protect the public’s health and well-being.
The Alberta College of Pharmacy values
Download a copy of ACP’s strategic direction (pdf).
ACP’s primary responsibility is to ensure safe, effective, and responsible pharmacy care for Albertans. We do this by setting, guiding, and monitoring expectations for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. To this end, ACP incorporates and promotes six dimensions of quality identified in the Health Quality Matrix adopted by the Health Quality Council of Alberta:
The health of Albertans is the heart of ACP’s business. ACP’s mission and vision focus on positively impacting the health of individuals through excellence in pharmacy practice. However, as a single entity within Alberta’s broader health system, interdependencies amongst partners and stakeholders are critical to success.
The public and ACP’s partners and interested parties must have confidence in ACP and its business practices. Therefore, ACP considers the needs and priorities of its partners and interested parties and pursues alignment to create opportunities and benefits that are not achievable by any one organization.
ACP strives to be a high performing, fiscally responsible organization. Effective governance and strong leadership are foundational to ACP’s success. Council’s leadership determines the culture and priorities of ACP.
The Council recognizes the value of a strong administrative team and the importance of providing them the direction, resources, and environment necessary to conduct the college’s business effectively.
ACP’s three critical success factors are further defined by seven strategic objectives.
1. Competent and responsible practitioners – ACP will assess pharmacists and pharmacy technicians at entry to practice and throughout their careers to ensure they are competent to perform their authorized roles. Pharmacy practitioners will conduct themselves professionally and ethically, and take personal responsibility for their decisions and actions.
2. Safe and effective practice environments and systems – Employers and pharmacy owners will provide practice environments that enable practitioners to use their full scope of practice. Systems will optimize work flow and performance, ensuring the safety of pharmacy practitioners and the individuals they serve. Practice environments will respect individuals’ confidentiality and the privacy of their personal information.
3. Accessible care – Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians will implement their full scope of practice. Individuals will be enabled to make informed decisions about accessing the level of care that they need when they need it. Individuals will experience appropriate and timely pharmacy care. Care will focus on the overall health and health goals of each individual, promoting wellness, disease prevention, and treatment as appropriate.
4. Effective governance and strong leadership – Informed and engaged pharmacy practitioners will pursue leadership opportunities. Council will establish clear governance policies and will monitor these regularly for compliance. ACP’s sustainability will be ensured through fiscal responsibility by Council and its administration.
5. Workplace of choice – ACP Council will empower its administrative team through the registrar, providing clear direction, the necessary resources, and the appropriate environment to conduct college business effectively. The college will invest in technologies and information systems to accommodate timely and evidence-informed decisions. Effective policies and efficient processes will be in place to support accountability and the best use of resources. Employees will be highly satisfied in their roles with ACP.
6. Public and interested party awareness – The public and ACP’s partners and interested parties will understand the role of ACP and recognize its value. Everyone will understand what to expect of pharmacy practitioners.
7. Credibility and trusting relationships – ACP will be viewed as consistent, knowledgeable, and objective in its decisions and business practices. ACP will be sought out as a valued partner and resource. Complaints received by ACP will be resolved in a timely, thorough, and fair way.
ACP reports our financial results and position to Council each year, and to Albertans through the audited financial statements posted in our annual report and on our website. The annual report and accompanying financial statements are provided to the Minister of Health and tabled in the Alberta legislature as required by the HPA.
Each year, ACP administration drafts a budget based on the college’s operational needs, a three-year business plan, and strategic goals and objectives. Council reviews and approves the budget, which includes approving the fee schedule, each year.
The Government of Alberta has delegated responsibility for the regulation of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and the operation of licensed pharmacies in Alberta to the Alberta College of Pharmacy (ACP). Along with that privilege is the responsibility to ensure that ACP has the means to fulfil its role. To achieve this, ACP charges fees to regulated members, licensees, and proprietors as the college’s primary source of revenue.
The fees that regulated members, licensees, and proprietors submit to ACP support the day-to-day operations of the college and achieve the goals and objectives in the college’s strategic plan.
It is good fiscal practice for a non-profit organization to maintain reserves to fund planned future needs or as a cushion against unplanned events and expenses. Council has established policies requiring ACP to maintain a certain level of reserves restricted for future needs, such as replacement of capital assets or significant legal costs, and unrestricted reserves to deal with unexpected emergencies. While these reserves may fluctuate, increasing if ACP runs a surplus and being drawn down when ACP runs a deficit, ACP seeks to maintain them at their target levels over the long run. These savings help provide stability to the fees that ACP charges to fund our daily operations, in the same way that household savings provide a cushion when individuals experience unexpected events outside of their normal budget.
Revenues received from fees allow the college to undertake our operations and meet our regulatory responsibilities. ACP’s revenues increase in two ways:
Each year, Council weighs both factors when setting the fees as part of the budget. Most years, Council increases the fees to keep pace with inflation – this provides predictability in fees over time and ensures that ACP’s operations can keep pace with rising costs. Council may decide that fee increases can be held below inflation. This happened in 2023 when Council kept pharmacist and pharmacy technician fee increases below the high rate of inflation in that year. However, in some years where there have been new regulatory requirements beyond what can be paid for by growth in regulated members, Council may increase fees by more than inflation. This is not the norm and has usually only occurred following years when Council has approved an increase that is lower than inflation.
Based on a survey of other provincial pharmacy regulators in 2024, ACP’s fees for pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacies are all below the Canadian average. As of 2024, ACP’s registration fees for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are approximately 15 per cent below the national average. ACP’s fees for pharmacy licences are approximately 16 per cent below the national average.
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