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Medication Safety Self-Assessment for Community Pharmacy - Comprehensive Canadian Version II Frequently Asked Questions

How many team meetings should we schedule?
Most teams have been able to complete the MSSA in 1-2 hours. You can do this in one or more meetings; data entry for each Key Element section is saved before proceeding to the next section.
Why do we need a team to complete the self-assessment? Can't the pharmacy owner/manager do it alone?
Because medication use is a complex process, the value and accuracy of the assessment is significantly reduced if it is completed by a single individual. Completion of the assessment is also an educational tool that can benefit the whole pharmacy team.
Do we need management representation on our team?
Participation of the pharmacy owner/manager and corporate district manager, if applicable, is valuable because the assessment contains many items that relate to the pharmacy's overall commitment to patient safety. Furthermore, participation in the self-assessment provides management staff with insight into areas of risk in the medication-use system.
What if an item doesn't apply to the services offered by my pharmacy?
A "not applicable" response is available for selected assessment items only, with criteria as described. Generally, this response is available for circumstances that do not exist (e.g., a pharmacy that does not offer opioid agonist therapy cannot respond to items related to this service).
May I make copies of the self-assessment document?
The copyright allows you to make copies of the self-assessment for internal use. You may not modify or alter the content.
My pharmacy is part of a group and there are multiple sites. Do I need a password for each one?
It is recommended that each site within a corporate group complete the assessment independently. Each site will require its own password.
How can we use our self-assessment results?
Once your data has been entered into the web-based program, there are several ways to examine the compiled information.

View/print options include:
  • Summary of results ("report card" format)
  • Graphs comparing your pharmacy's results to the aggregate database for key elements and individual assessment items, including available filters based on demographic information submitted. (To ensure confidentiality, there must be at least 3 respondents in the aggregate to generate graphs.)