HALIFAX — Nova Scotia’s decision to allow pharmacists to provide preventative treatments for early signs of Lyme disease has led to a steep reduction in emergency room visits for tick bites, a new study says. Researchers at Dalhousie University in Halifax compared the number of emergency room visits in three Nova Scotia hospitals before and after pharmacists began prescribing preventative treatment in 2021. They found the rate of visits for tick bites dropped by about 50 per cent after the change. “It frees up the emergency department to see patients who need their care,” Emily Black, the study’s lead author, said in a recent interview. The dramatic decline marked an important change in a province that has the highest incidence of Lyme disease in Canada. Nova Scotia is one of six jurisdictions in the country where pharmacists can provide preventative treatment for the illness. And in 2024, the province became the first in Canada to allow pharmacists to provide early treatment for those already diagnosed with Lyme disease. Black said expanding pharmacists’ scope of practice has helped Nova Scotia’s health-care system and could do the same for other parts of the country. “Nova Scotia is definitely ahead of most other provinces,” Black said. “My hope would be … that other provinces can learn from some of our experiences and hopefully increase access to care in other places.” Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne illness in North America. It is caused by bacteria transmitted by the bites of infected black-legged or western black-legged ticks. Among Canadian provinces and territories, Nova Scotia has the highest ratio of ticks to people, with the province’s South Shore and Annapolis Valley regions reporting the largest tick populations. In 2024, there were more than 2,300 cases of Lyme disease reported in Nova Scotia, according to federal data. Sadaf Faisal, chief pharmacist officer at the Canadian Pharmacists Association, said although all pharmacists in Canada are trained to provide preventative and early treatment for the disease, many parts of the country do not allow them to do so. “We really want to see a greater consistency across Canada, where pharmacists are enabled to practise to their full education and training … so patients can benefit regardless of where they live,” Faisal said. Matthew Clarke, the associate chief medical information officer for Nova Scotia Health, said emergency departments in the province are facing significant strains that are leading to long wait times. “Having a tick bite and having to wait many hours in an emergency department for treatment is not great from a patient experience,” he said, adding that allowing pharmacists to treat tick bites reduces the amount of time those patients are waiting for care. “So, certainly a massive difference for those patients.” Clarke, who is also an emergency department physician in Halifax, said that in recent years, he has seen fewer patients seeking care for tick bites. He said the study’s results should encourage other jurisdictions to follow Nova Scotia’s lead. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 6, 2026.
