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District 4 - Christopher Szeman
I am writing in support of my nomination for re-election as Board Member for District 4 (Kootenay/Okanagan) of the College of Pharmacists of British Columbia. I have served on the board for almost two years. I am very active with the College. I am the current chair of the Jurisprudence Exam Sub-Committee and a member of the Legislation Review Committee. I have been a registered member in good standing with the College of Pharmacists for 21 years.
I have lived in this region in Coldstream, with my lovely wife and two amazing children since 2005. Prior to that I worked and lived in the Fraser Valley so I am somewhat uniquely qualified to understand the needs of those living in smaller communities.
I am currently a Pharmacy Manager with London Drugs in Vernon. I began my career with London Drugs as a Pharmacy Assistant while in my third year at UBC. After graduating with a BSC Pharmacy in 1997, I moved into a full time Pharmacist position and moved into a leadership role two years later as an Assistant Manager; subsequently taking on the role of Pharmacy Manager in 2006.
As part of advancing our scope of practice my staff and I actively promote the college’s initiatives within our day-to-day practice:
- I am a Certified Injection Pharmacist; and all my pharmacists are certified to inject.
- I have experience working with Assisted Living homes
- Certified Diabetes Educator on staff
- Certified Regulated Technician on staff
- I encourage my staff to perform medication reviews and adaptations when warranted
The mission statement of the College is to regulate the pharmacy profession in the public interest. Everything that the board decides must be based in the public’s best interest. This is very critical since if it is seen by the Ministry of Health that the board is instead acting in the interest of the profession, the Minister can appoint a public administrator to discharge the powers and duties of the board.
Being a self-regulated profession is truly a privilege, but it is also a process that in the end requires the Ministry of Health to have the final say to all board decisions (currently on the Minister’s desk: Certified Pharmacist Prescriber). Any changes to bylaw takes about a year to get through. Over the past two years, we as a board passed many motions. Some examples of what has been implemented: Telepharmacy bylaws updated, Pharmacy ownership bylaws updated to reflect changes by the Provincial Government, Practice Reviews phase 2 implemented into Hospitals, updating PPP 66 – Opioid Agonist Treatment, PPP 67- injectable hydromorphone maintenance treatment, and PPP 69 Mandatory Pharmacy Manager Training. Coming soon is Electronic Record Keeping!
If re-elected, I would look forward to offering my time and expertise to the College, its registrants and in particular registrants of the communities in the Kootenay/Okanagan area.
With the Utmost Appreciation,
Chris Szeman
Pharmacy Manager, London Drugs #39
700-4400 32nd Street, Vernon, B.C. V1T 9H2
Tel: 250-549-2888 Fax: 250-558-4895
Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]