Pharmacy & Formulary

BC Renal Onboarding Initiatives & Teams Vital to Our Work – Part 1 Pharmacy & Formulary

BC leads the country in renal medication coverage, with three main drug formularies that ensure patients have access to medications essential to their kidney care. This includes formularies for kidney patients who are:

Receiving dialysis treatment
Not receiving dialysis treatment (eGFR < 15 mL/min or eGFR > 15 mL/min )
With glomerulonephritis

Additionally, BC funds nutritional supplements for all registered kidney patients, both those on dialysis and those in earlier stages of the disease. This is one of many factors contributing to our patients having the highest survival rates in the country.

Formulary planning is done annually, but relevant committees also meet every six months and ad hoc to discuss proposals.

A decision to add a drug to the formularies involves a thorough evaluation of the clinical evidence as well as the evidence that it maximizes lives saved or health gained with the finite resources available (i.e., it provides value for money).

If required, BC Renal works with the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) to assess funding needs and to advocate to the Ministry of Health for increased funding. The process is rigorous and fair, and decisions are never easy as funding requests typically outstrip the dollars available.

If a medication is added to a formulary, patient counseling sheets, algorithms, processes and protocols may be created to promote appropriate use.

The BC Renal network of kidney experts also monitors and reviews the latest evidence to ensure patients using the medications do so safely and derive benefit.