On National Caregiver Day, Teva Canada acknowledges all caregivers and the critical work they provide in supporting our healthcare system both in times of crisis and normalcy, and remains committed to providing the most relevant information and resources to help caregivers feel confident in the care they provide through caregiver-focused programs.

Today, in Canada, there are eight million caregivers that play an important role in advocating, mediating and coordinating care with health care professionals, but they need more support. According to Statistics Canada’s General Social Survey 2018 (released January 2020), almost a quarter struggle to understand the treatment program and condition of the person they are caring for; 56 per cent look for information specific to the medical condition of the care recipient and 36 per cent require help or advice from medical professionals.

Teva Canada’s Caregiver-Friendly Pharmacy Program

Recognizing the importance of the caregiver-pharmacist connection, Teva Canada, part of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE and TASE: TEVA), launched the Caregiver-Friendly Pharmacy (CFP) program which includes accredited training for pharmacy teams and online resources for caregivers that are further supported with a mapping tool that helps carers find a pharmacy in their local area that specializes in their needs at www.tevacaregivers.com.

“We know that more than 80 per cent of caregivers pick up medication for their loved one and pharmacists are a highly trusted and accessible member of the healthcare team,” says Christine Poulin, Teva Canada’s General Manager. “Teva Canada recognized the opportunity to strengthen and optimize the relationship between caregivers and the pharmacy team by providing the relevant tools and resources that caregivers are in need of.”

“Since launching nationally less than a year ago, more than 1,600 pharmacists have received training on how to make the care experience easier,” says David Boughner, Teva Canada’s Senior Director, Partnerships and Corporate Communications. “We know the need for this information exists as more than 10,000 Canadians are accessing Teva Canada’s Caregiver website each month looking for free information and resources.”

Mike Boivin, a pharmacist from Barrie, Ontario sees the need first-hand. “With greater access to information, a support network and the pharmacy team, caregivers can feel more empowered in their knowledge and abilities in providing care,” he says. “Pharmacists understand the burden and stressors so many caregivers are experiencing and with this program, pharmacists can help them feel more confident in caring for their loved one and themselves.”

The free Caregiver-Friendly Pharmacy program includes:

• a designated caregiver website that offers downloadable resources, tools and checklists, videos of carers and essential legal information and guidelines for serving as a Power of Attorney for a patient (www.tevacaregivers.com)
• My Caregiver Handbook – designed to help alleviate stress and anxiety by showing people how to navigate the healthcare system more efficiently
• Caregiver Self-Assessment Form which helps to flag for signs of burnout or fatigue to determine if they need help from a health care provider
• a link to the Huddol community -- Canada’s largest online caregiver support network that connects caregivers with peer and expert guidance (www.huddol.com).

“With the rapid growth of the program and adoption by the caregiver community, Teva Canada continues to build and enhance the CFP program,” said Poulin. “At www.tevacaregivers.com, we’ve recently added helpful guides for caring for people with specific conditions like cancer, dementia and multiple sclerosis, and a ten-episode podcast series on Care During Cancer that explores the most common issues that patients, families and caregivers may experience while living with cancer.”

New Initiative – Teva Canada and Huddol Offer Free Virtual Personal Assistance to Caring Families During the COVID-19 Crisis

With support from Teva Canada, Huddol announced today the creation of a Caregiver Community Fund. Through this fund, Huddol Pro’s (a group of multidisciplinary healthcare professionals, some bilingual) will provide free personal 1-to-1 video support sessions. Caregivers will have free virtual access to 40 health and wellness professionals for 30 days through Huddol.com using the promo code “TevaCares”. Following the initial free period, the services will continue to be offered at discounted fees. This is in addition to Huddol’s already free social network. Caregivers are facing new realities each day that complicate the way they provide needed care. Issues such as the inability to contact family members in care facilities; self-isolation and the challenge of meeting the needs of those that still depend on them; and the enormous demand of caregiving for additional loved ones during COVID-19 have increased. Virtual connections to emotional support and practical guidance are crucial to make sense of this new and unexpected reality.

“This virtual network of 40 professionals offers advice and support in a multitude of disciplines including mental health, nutrition, senior care, parenting, and in-home support services,” says Huddol CEO Mark Stolow. “With Teva Canada’s support, we’re grateful to be able to provide free counselling and coaching support to caregivers who may be feeling even more isolated in their homes or restricted from their loved ones in hospitals or long-term care settings.”

Poulin agrees. “We know caregivers can feel very alone and need support in the best of times. In the current COVID-19 climate, we’re seeing mental health professionals offer free counselling to frontline healthcare workers in Canada, and now there’s a similar program to help Canadian caregivers gain more access to experts, more quickly, to deal with everything from stress and anxiety to strains on relationships.”

“At Teva, we serve nearly 200 million people every day around the world with our medicines. We’re proud to be expanding the narrative by supporting the caregivers who care for their loved ones and empowering pharmacists with the resources to provide needed education and support,” says Poulin. “I invite Canadians to share the caregiver experience by watching Teva Canada’s Acts of Love video to see how caregivers embrace their changing role in order to bring care and joyous moments to a loved one as their health changes.”

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 220,000 01prescriptions filled each day with our products. Originally Novopharm Limited, Teva Canada specializes in the development, production and marketing of high-quality generic prescription pharmaceuticals and through our branded division, focuses on a diverse line of innovative products in a variety of therapeutic areas. Teva Canada employs more than 1,000 professionals, had sales of nearly $1.3 billion 02 in 2019 and markets more than 385 products in 1,000 SKUs 03 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.