Beyond equality: Providing equitable care for persons with disabilities.

Background: Almost 14% of Canadians have a disability, and older adults are most commonly affected. People living with disabilities have challenges accessing health care services, including medications and other services provided in pharmacies.

Methods: A literature review was conducted regarding disability and pharmacy services. Resources regarding accessibility were also incorporated.

Results: A number of organizations provide guidance on caring for those with disabilities. A primary concern for these vulnerable individuals relates to being invisible or overlooked by the health care system. There are also the stresses of physical, communication and attitudinal barriers. Pharmacists may be unaware of these barriers and may actually be contributing to them. To understand their patients' accessibility needs, pharmacists can consider physical and nonphysical barriers and engage in education, advocacy and communications training to improve their patient-centred care for individuals with disabilities.

Discussion and Conclusion: Pharmacists can improve the care of individuals with disabilities by learning more about accessibility. Within the community pharmacy environment, there are physical and nonphysical interventions that pharmacists can implement to ensure that patient-centred care is prioritized.