Belleville - C'est belle!

Each community will have their share of nice and not-so-nice people. I had the privilege of meeting the nice people today. A pharmacy provided us with brief, but very much appreciated, hospitality. We were able to meet with some of the pharmacists, me being able to talk about our experiences with an older one who was incredibly nice. These pharmacists had accompanied us to the MPP’s office, where we had rallied. 4 of our student team entered in conversation with the MPP, who had specifically wanted to talk with students. Our PR person had come in as well (she looked young enough to be one of us anyway) to take notes during the conversation. The conversation was said to have gone very well and she had agreed to push for more negotiations at the table before implementing the new regulatory changes to DIDFA.

Afterwards, we had canvassed for 2 hours, and my friend and I once again were together canvassing. (We make such a good team anyway!) On our way back, we had encountered a lady who was known as the oldest person with FASD. FASD, or foetal alcohol syndrome, is a condition that results when the mother of the baby has taken excessive amounts of alcohol during the pregnancy. It is known that the alcohol has detrimental effects on the development of the baby, including certain neurological deficits due to the alcohol hindering brain development. There is now some movement towards educating the public to not drink if there was a possibility that one could be pregnant, as it would then avoid foetal exposure to such alcohol and thus, avoid the brain of the baby from not developing properly.

Anyway, it was so inspiring to hear her talk. She completely agreed that the services that pharmacies provide are essential to the patients with FASD. She sees this first-hand with these patients, as she is a volunteer receptionist at a centre that provides education about FASD. Not to mention, having such a condition would further make her understanding the needs of these patients as well. What struck me was her explanation that FASD patients has trouble understanding the words that are read or listened; therefore, FASD patients may not understand what is put on the label or said through patient counselling. Therefore, pharmacists must act out how to take the medications in order to properly show how their patients should take their medications. That is something that I will forever keep in mind whenever I see anyone with FASD.

She had referred us to the pharmacist who serves all of these FASD patients. She had even given us directions to how to get to her pharmacy. Unfortunately, we were not able to do so due to the tight schedule that our tour was running. Even more unfortunate was our lack of ability to actually explain to her that we were not going to be able to go there. However, I would never forget this experience. I will use this to educate myself in FASD and how to communicate effectively with FASD patients.