TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--What if there was a better way to support Canadian patients and caregivers and change the way we deliver healthcare? Since 2019, Teva Canada has been committed to supporting the important work of Canada’s 8.1M unpaid caregivers through the Caregiver-Friendly Pharmacy (CFP) program. Recognizing the significant challenges experienced by caregivers into the third year of the pandemic, Teva Canada is expanding its focus to uncover new ideas, turning to healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers to re-imagine a healthcare system that better supports Canadians at all stages of life.
“Teva Canada is pleased on National Caregiver Day to be partnering with People Before Patients, a movement that invites everyone to engage in healthcare reform,” says Teva Canada General Manager, Christine Poulin. “We’re bringing health and wellness visionaries to the table to discuss what a healthcare system would look like if health and care co-existed in better balance. This is especially important for today’s caregiver who juggles many roles in managing the wellbeing of loved ones, often with complex needs in a complex healthcare system.”
According to the General Social Survey – Caregiving and Care Receiving1 (compiled pre-pandemic, released in 2022), one in four Canadians aged 15 or older are providing care for family members or friends with a long-term condition, a physical or mental disability or problems related to aging. (More than 20,000 respondents polled represent 31 million Canadians.)
Women account for almost two-thirds of caregivers providing 20 or more hours of care per week and those providing that level of care are more likely to report their caregiving responsibilities to be stressful or very stressful2. A further 86 per cent of respondents who provide more than 20 hours of care per week felt they were unable to spend as much time with their family and more than three-quarters (78 per cent) reported spending less time participating in social activities and with friends3.
“The pandemic meant that many Canadians experienced the limitations of our healthcare system. Countless caregivers have had to fill in the gaps when caring for a family member or friend who is vulnerable. Through a number of new initiatives, we are creating a platform for the exchange of ideas, big and small, that empowers caregivers to collaborate with health professionals and stakeholders for a better system,” says People Before Patients’ CEO Mark Stolow.
Charting A Prescription for Care
To get the conversation started, today Teva Canada launches a 5-week series of podcasts featuring insights from valued healthcare thought leaders in Canada, including:
- April 5, 2022 Scott Swanson, Caregiver to elderly parents, Vancouver, British Columbia
- April 12, 2022 Dr. Danielle Paes, Chief Pharmacist at the Canadian Pharmacists’ Association, Markham, Ontario
- April 19, 2022 Karine Degré, Nurse, Montreal, Quebec
- April 26, 2022 Dr. Nicole Didyk, Gerontologist, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario
- May 3, 2022 Bhaskar Goswami, Wellness Visionary, Montreal, Quebec
Each guest will reflect on an important pillar of the healthcare system and will highlight what their personal prescription for the future of Canadian healthcare should encapsulate. As National Caregiver month closes out, the speakers will come together for a unique panel discussion on May 10, 2022, featuring a keynote address from #SickNotWeak founder and mental health advocate, Michael Landsberg. Having much experience as a caregiver to someone with a mental illness, and open about his own struggles with depression, he has front-row perspective on the unique challenges of caregiving for someone with a mental illness versus a physical one.
To harvest the collective experiences and visions of what the future of healthcare should look like, Teva Canada has developed the “Prescription for Care” national online survey. From today through to May 31, 2022, the survey will capture ideas from adult Canadians who care about their health and the health of their communities. Findings from this national online survey will be compiled and a framework for change paper will be shared with key healthcare and government stakeholders. It will be available to the public on Teva Canada’s website and via social channels.
“We’re looking to healthcare users, including patients, paid and unpaid caregivers and those within the healthcare system to draw on their experiences and provide their unique insights,” says Jason Soler, Senior Director, Marketing & Market Access for Teva Canada. “The role of Caregiver has evolved over the decades, but have the supports that are required to maintain best care for both patients and caregivers kept up with the pace? We’re eager to review the ideas and outcomes from the survey to present an overview of what’s working for caregivers and where more help is needed.”
About the Teva Canada Caregiver-Friendly Pharmacy
In 2019 Teva Canada launched the Caregiver Friendly Pharmacy (CFP) program – a national program that supports caregivers with online tools and resources and empowers pharmacists to identify and engage with caregivers.
The CFP includes:
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Downloadable Online Caregiver resources used by over a quarter of a million Canadians including:
- a caregiver handbook, helping you navigate the healthcare system
- a caregiver self-assessment, which asks, “how are you doing through all of this?”
- guides that offer a caregiver’s perspective on cancer, dementia, multiple sclerosis and HIV/AIDS
- tools to share with healthcare professionals, making it easier to keep everyone informed
- power of attorney forms, allowing you to communicate openly with members of the healthcare team
- links to caregiver and patient support organizations in your community
- links to helpful apps for caregivers
- a search tool to find a local pharmacy that has been trained to support caregivers.
About Teva Canada
Teva Canada, headquartered in Toronto, has provided affordable healthcare solutions to Canadians for over 50 years, building their trust one prescription at a time with now more than 290,0004 prescriptions filled each day with our products, representing 1 of every 5 generic prescriptions in Canada5. The company specializes in the development, production, and marketing of high-quality generic prescription pharmaceuticals and, through our branded division, focuses on a diverse line of speciality and biopharmaceutical products in a variety of therapeutic areas such as central nervous system (CNS), respiratory, oncology and rheumatology. Teva Canada’s commitment to helping improve the lives of Canadians also extends to the Teva Caregiver program – providing tools and resources for Canadians navigating the care journey. Teva Canada employs more than 900 professionals, had sales of nearly $1.2 billion6 in 2021, and markets more than 3207 products in over 9357 SKUs in Canada. We are a proud subsidiary of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Learn more at www.tevacanada.com.
About Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE and TASE: TEVA) has been developing and producing medicines to improve people’s lives for more than a century. We are a global leader in generic and specialty medicines with a portfolio consisting of over 3,500 products in nearly every therapeutic area. Around 200 million people around the world take a Teva medicine every day and are served by one of the largest and most complex supply chains in the pharmaceutical industry. Along with our established presence in generics, we have significant innovative research and operations supporting our growing portfolio of specialty and biopharmaceutical products. Learn more at www.tevapharm.com.
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1 Statistics Canada, “Differences in the characteristics of caregivers and caregiving arrangements of Canadians, 2018. Released 2022-01-14 https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220114/dq220114c-info-eng.htm
2 Statistics Canada, “Differences in the characteristics of caregivers and caregiving arrangements of Canadians, 2018. Released 2022-01-14
3 Statistics Canada, “Differences in the characteristics of caregivers and caregiving arrangements of Canadians, 2018. Released 2022-01-14 https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220114/dq220114c-info-eng.htm
4 Source: IQVIA CDH Compuscript TRx MAT Dec 2021.
5 Source: IQVIA Compuscript Trx MAT 2021.12.
6 Source: IQVIA CDH & Compuscript MAT Dec 2021.
7 Source: Teva Price list January 17, 2022.
