Yes, indeed, in the 1980s, there was a national oversight program that monitored prescriptions for controlled substances. All the pharmacists in Canada were required to report their sales of certain products that were controlled under federal legislation. The reports of those sales were all sent to Ottawa where the data was put into a system and reviewed.
Specific programs assessed trends by product or by specific region, by appointment or by multiple appointments. Of course, hundreds and thousands of prescriptions were written each year. A program of that kind serves to identify behaviours that might suggest inappropriate prescriptions, multiple appointments or abuses that, in some cases, could implicate health professionals in terms of purchases for use in the office. Under federal legislation, investigations were launched when suspicious behaviours were discovered that required specific action. The program was in existence for several years. It was not abolished until the 1990s. I do not know the exact date.