Nova Scotia Pharmacare ESD Pilot
***Providers with an Ocean account looking to learn how to submit Pharmacare ESD Requests through Ocean***
View the step-by-step guide below:
How to Send ESD Request via Ocean
It is highly recommended to launch Ocean from your EMR, as this will cause patient and provider demographics to be automatically populated in Ocean.
Overview
Nova Scotia is piloting a modernized Pharmacare Exceptional Status Drug (ESD) request process with the launch of a single, standardized, searchable digital form in Ocean. This replaces over 50 separate PDF forms, streamlining requests for over 100 medications. The new process aims to save time, minimize paperwork, and reduce administrative burden.
The first phase of the pilot will last 6 months and is only accessible to providers who already have an Ocean account. Providers without an Ocean account will continue to submit Pharmacare ESD requests through existing methods, such as e-Fax, fax, or mail.
Access
For providers with an Ocean account, the Pharmacare ESD form is now available through the Ocean platform, with seamless integration for EMR users. Key features include:
- Auto-population of patient and referrer demographics
- Search by medication (generic or brand name)
- Smart logic to only display relevant fields
- Direct links to the NS Formulary for up-to-date coverage criteria
Training
Providers with an Ocean account can view the step-by-step guide to submitting a Pharmacare ESD request below:
How to Send ESD Request via Ocean
It is highly recommended to launch Ocean from your EMR, as this will cause patient and provider demographics to be automatically populated in Ocean.
Quick Tip: save the Pharmacare ESD listing to your favorites to easily access the listing! Learn how to do this here.
Support
If you experience difficulties with the Pharmacare ESD form in Ocean, you can reach out to the pilot program team at esd.pilot@novascotia.ca.
In the meantime, you should submit your Pharmacare ESD request through existing methods, such as e-Fax, fax, or mail.
If you have issues with the Ocean platform, you can view their support resources and reach out to their support team for help here.
Future Work
At the end of the 6-month pilot, the solution will be assessed, and next steps will be developed.
To inform this evaluation, we encourage all providers who have participated in the pilot to submit their feedback here: https://forms.office.com/r/5ndAFgnuQc.
The long-term vision is to allow all providers to submit Pharmacare ESD requests through Ocean to save time, reduce paperwork, and reduce administrative burden for providers and improve access to care for patients in Nova Scotia.
