Continuing Professional Development

What’s New

• Manitoba parents can book COVID-19 vaccination for at-risk, Indigenous kids under 5 starting Monday

  Manitoba is expanding COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to include children under the age of five, but due to a temporary shortage of doses, the province is prioritizing kids with certain medical conditions and those who are First Nations, Métis and Inuit. "I know this day is a day that many parents have been waiting for for quite some time. Many will feel that sense of relief that their child is now eligible," Manitoba Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Brent Roussin said during a Wednesday afternoon news conference. "This vaccine has a very safe profile and is effective." Health Canada approved the two-dose Moderna vaccine for kids age six months to four years old last week. The dosage is roughly one-quarter the size of the dose given to adults. There are approximately 76,700 children in Manitoba in the under-five age group, but the province is only receiving 14,900 doses in the first delivery, Roussin said. They won't be available at pharmacies because pharmacists aren't legally able to immunize children in this age bracket, at least for now. Roussin indicated that public health may look to pharmacists to help out at some point, and Pharmacists Manitoba says it's ready and willing. "Pharmacists across the province are certainly prepared and ready to help keep our community safe in any way possible. And so if the province calls upon us to help immunize younger children, we're prepared to step up to the plate," said Tim Smith, the pharmacy practice adviser for the organization. …

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• Pharmacists Manitoba Practice Advisor, Tim Smith: Provincial program seeks to assist smokers ditch habit

  On April 1, 2022 l News - Butting-out could become a bit easier for Manitobans, as pharmacists prepare to offer counselling and nicotine replacement therapy for those ready to ditch the habit. According to Pharmacists Manitoba, the program include a 60-minute session with a pharmacist to create a personalized plan. Up to nine follow-up appointments are also included, which can take up to 15 minutes each. A $100 subsidy for nicotine replacement therapies or prescribed medications is also available. More than 170 pharmacies are participating in a new smoking cessation program intended to improve quit rates for people with tobacco dependency. Up to 4,500 people are expected to enroll in the program over a three-year period, Mental Health Minister Sarah Guillemard said Friday. “I personally know that smoking is very difficult to quit and most people need to try more than one time in order quit successfully,” Guillemard said during an announcement at Pembina Drugs in the Fort Richmond area of Winnipeg. “Research shows that people with access to smoking cessation counselling are up to 40 per cent more likely to quit successfully.”…

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