British Columbia has become the first province in Canada to grant pharmaceutical prescription rights to Naturopathic Physicians. This progressive legislation is timely in that the province of BC is experiencing a shortage of primary care physicians and that public demand for integrative and holistic medicine is escalating. Naturopathic Doctors have been trained to prescribe, monitor, and adjust prescription medications as part of their medical training. This new legislation allows ND’s to provide comprehensive primary care by broadening their scope of practice to include prescriptive pharmaceutical rights.

Dr. Brett Phillips and Dr. Brent Barlow are amongst the first wave of Naturopathic Doctors in Canada to have the authority to prescribe medications. Having these new prescription privileges will benefit their current and future patients. “Our current patients will receive a more integrative health care experience as they will no longer need to be referred to a medical doctor for their prescription needs,” says Dr. Barlow. Dr. Phillips adds, “Having these privileges will be advantageous for individuals and families who require immediate conventional medical intervention and do not have a medical doctor or for those who have recently moved to the Okanagan and are unable to find an MD who is accepting new patients.”

Deserving recognition and credit go to the Pharmacy Department at the University of British Columbia and the Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine, who designed and administered the prescription course and examination process. At this time a majority of the 400 Naturopathic Doctors practicing in the province have already completed the requirements for prescription privileges.

For more information on the prescriptive privileges granted to Naturopathic Physicians please contact Dr. Phillips and Dr. Barlow at Okanagan Naturopathic Healthcare. They can be reached at 250-860-8855.