Characteristics of patients seeking skin-related minor ailment pharmacy services in Ontario, Canada: a population-based cross-sectional study

As healthcare systems are increasingly strained, policymakers in various jurisdictions have turned to pharmacies to offload services to treat minor ailments. These services were recently implemented in Ontario, Canada’s largest province, with 7 of 19 eligible minor ailments being skin conditions. In this letter, we provide the first description of the initial uptake of this new service for skin conditions, describing its users and how they compare with the general population of Ontario. Our findings show high utilization, highlighting the growing role of pharmacy-based skin services. Users tend to already be strongly connected to the healthcare system, suggesting potential disparities in access. These insights offer valuable guidance for policymakers as they refine and expand such programmes.