Windsor wants to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to keeping fentanyl patches off its streets.
Bill 33, which will require all pharmacies to exchange used patches for new ones, has just gone through its third and final reading at Queen's Park and is expected to become law in three to six months.
In the meantime, past president of the Essex County Pharmacy Association Peter Dumo says local physicians will be recommending patients to local pharmacies.
"Patients are going to forget the card (for the used fentanyl patches), doctors are going to forget to write which pharmacy it's going to go to," he says. "There's going to be a learning curve. We're going to have to work with patients on this too -- and care-givers. Sometimes it's not the patient who's in charge of the patches, it's the home-care worker."
Dumo expects the system to be running smoothly, in Windsor, by the time the patch-for-patch program becomes law in Ontario.
In 2013, there were 33 deaths in Windsor-Essex due to narcotic overdoses. This year, there have been seven deaths linked to fentanyl patches alone.
