PharmaTrust signs agreement with Sagamok community to provide MedCentre

PharmaTrust has signed the first agreement of its kind to provide a MedCentre to a First Nation community in northern Ontario. In a signing ceremony on October 29^th the Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation community finalized an agreement with PharmaTrust for the deployment of a MedCentre, which will give the community the option of convenient 24/7 access to pharmacy services.

"PharmaTrust is thrilled that the Sagamok community is leading the way in the adoption of this technology," said Don Waugh, CEO of PharmaTrust. "This is just the first of many rural and remote communities that will benefit from the adoption of a MedCentre, as we anticipate deployments in other northern and rural communities in the near future."

The Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation community is located on the north shore of Lake Huron with an on reserve population of 1,400 people of the Ojibwe, Odawa and Pottawatomi tribes.

"We are looking forward to the increased convenience and accessibility of pharmacy services that the MedCentre will bring to our community," said Chief Paul Eshkakogan. "The PharmaTrust MedCentre is a unique technology that will make health services more available to our residents."

The PharmaTrust MedCentres use advanced robotic, scanning and video-conference technology to connect individuals in real-time to a pharmacist in another location, take a digital scan of a prescription and then select the appropriate medication and release it to the patient. This is a process which is controlled remotely by the pharmacist at the other end of the video conference. This video conference technology means the MedCentre could also work as a platform to connect remote communities to other primary care providers such as physicians.

"As the Administrator for the Sagamok First Nation, I am thrilled that our community will have greatly improved access to pharmacy services," said Laura Owl, Acting Director of Operations for the Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nation Community. "I look forward to collaborating with the PharmaTrust pharmacists to improve patient care and counseling."

The PharmaTrust MedCentre will be a completely managed solution at no cost to the community with installation anticipated in early 2011.

"We feel this agreement is a historic event in the development and delivery of health services for Aboriginal and First Nation people across the province," said Don Waugh. "We are actively seeking out other communities for the adoption of MedCentres and look forward to this technology connecting these communities to needed health care services in an unprecedented way."