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Micro-practice – Future Direction for Pharmacy
I2P has long proposed that pharmacy attracts two types of consumers – customers and patients. A little reflection will resolve this issue because clearly, customers will be attracted to the more commercialised aspects of pharmacy that compete with retailing in general, and the reason why pharmacists see their major competitors as supermarkets and variety stores.…
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Value Over Profit ?
When pharmacy comes under financial pressure it always looks for a “quick fix” and it usually takes the form of concentrating resources and focus into various retail channels of activity. Even though pharmacists are criticised for expanding their retail offering and daring to create survival profits, it is a necessary activity to ensure that the…
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Do we exclude our oldest customers?
People over the age of 85 are significantly more likely to suffer social exclusion than those in the 65 to 85-year-old bracket, according to new research. We know that a loss of social contact can damage physical and mental health, and furthermore, older people are more likely to need care from external providers. Let’s look…
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Patient Navigation – An old-new Opportunity for Pharmacists
i2P has commented before that community pharmacy has (and still is) the epicentre for primary health care. In many ways it was the original patient-centred home and it had a market share approaching 70 percent in the mid to late 1970’s when it was first surveyed. The entry point to primary health care within community…
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Consumerism, health care costs and patient-centred “homes”
Health objectives in Australia are shifting from fee for service models to capitation models in a bid to simultaneously improve quality and reduce costs. The idea of a patient-centred “home” led by a doctor is touted as the principal model of care. i2P has always pointed to the fact that any business model led by…
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Three Bioethicists Critical of Pharmacy Retailing
Three bioethicists have combined to criticise the concept of community pharmacy conducting retail front of shop activities, while simultaneously working in the best interests of the patient. Their comments are published in Croakey here. The bioethicists, Wendy Lipworth, Christopher Mayes and Ian Kerridge (all medical academics attached to the University of Sydney) discuss what is…
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It’s time for a new prescription
The community pharmacy is fighting to survive amid aggressive price disclosures, high expenses and pressures from wholesalers. Yet, the treatment of slashing costs and pushing discounts only focuses on the symptom of financial turmoil, rather than treating the root cause of the problem. The financial turmoil facing the pharmacy industry is a symptom of a…
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Throw The Map Away And Just Use The Compass
One of my hobbies is genealogy and I find it deeply satisfying when I can apply some areas of this discipline to my professional activities. For example, the origin of surnames for when I am involved in a formal interview, I will often use the patient’s surname as a conversation starter by asking the patient…
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Four trends that will drive future health policy – PGA analysis
A recent bulletin was issued by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia (PGA) that gave an insight into the thinking behind the 7CPA preparation that will commence shortly. i2P thought that this would be an excellent point in time to contribute comment in a constructive manner. Hopefully a “think-tank” process may evolve where input can be…
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Mean girls who impede the success of other women
Editor’s Note: My generation has long lived with the concept of the “glass ceiling” for women in senior management positions and as pharmacy owners. I have never personally felt that I was discriminatory against women in any workplace situation that I was involved with, but I guess that is really for others to judge. But…