Under the Canadian constitution, education and licensure for the health professions practice fall within the jurisdiction of each of the ten provinces and three territories. However, the desire for reciprocity has necessitated that mechanisms be developed to ensure comparable levels of education across the country.

In the case of pharmacy, the Association of Faculties of Pharmacy of Canada, a voluntary association of pharmacy academics, developed a standard minimum curriculum in the 1940's. Subsequently, a national pharmacy examination board, The Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (PEBC), was established in 1963. Through the National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities (NAPRA) Mutual Recognition Agreement signed in 2000 all provinces and territories, except Québec, require PEBC registration as a prerequisite for licensure of in- and out-of-province graduates and out-of-country applicants.

The approved minimum curriculum, coupled with a national examination, worked well in establishing comparability among the Faculties of Pharmacy*, as long as pharmacy education was primarily a university-based, science program. However, with the move towards a more clinically orientated program, it became increasingly difficult to achieve consensus on what specific content should be included in the minimum curriculum. The introduction of clinical clerkships and extended practicums of varying lengths and types, the use of external clinical teaching facilities, the utilization of part-time clinical instructors in place of full-time tenured faculty, all led to the recognition that increased emphasis on student outcome was more important than strict adherence to a rigidly defined minimum curriculum. As a result, the concept of a standard minimum curriculum was dropped.

However, the need for a mechanism to facilitate reciprocity remained. Also, there was a growing recognition by pharmacy practitioners, pharmacy educators and the various pharmacy examination and licensing bodies that the Canadian public was entitled to assurance that the pharmacy education provided by the various universities met recognized Canadian standards and was more or less comparable. Hence, the establishment of The Canadian Council for Accreditation of Pharmacy Programs (CCAPP) which was granted Letters Patent by the Canadian Government on 5 January 1993. Dr. Bruce Schnell served as the first CCAPP Executive Director until June 30, 2003. Dr. Schnell was followed as executive director by Dr. Jim Blackburn from 2003 to 2006. Dr. David Hill was appointed executive director effective August 2006.