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Pharmacist Prescribing – It’s Time!
Australian pharmacists lag behind their counterparts in other western economies (particularly the UK) in their scope of practice involving independent prescribing. In Scotland, for example, around 40 percent of pharmacists are registered as prescribers. The problem in Australia is a cultural one. Firstly, there has been disharmony within the pharmacy profession through disruption of the […]
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The Perfect Prescription
In the world of pharmacy we have evolved from basically a practice that dealt in compounded prescriptions of herbal substances at an affordable cost to a plethora of synthetic drugs supported by dubious evidence. And it has happened in my lifetime. My query is that if we have a situation where so-called solid evidence exists […]
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Panadol Osteo? Give me a break!
It’s a little hard to believe that the biggest talking point in health early in 2016 is the price rise around Panadol Osteo. This is happening at a time when the entire health (or illness) system is bursting at the seams, and the role of the pharmacist within this system is under ever-increasing scrutiny, We’re […]
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Drug Overdose Increasing – Known Solutions Ignored
Dear Colleagues, BMJ article: increasing overdoses but they ignore known solutions (+ Hari TED talk). There is no more ‘final’ statistic regarding drug use than overdose deaths. And in England the official figures go back to Victorian times, then often involving opium, laudanum and other strong drugs including alcohol. The British Coroner’s Act of 1844 […]
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Screening over-70’s for memory issues – what can it achieve?
An international panel has recommended all people over 70 be tested each year for problems with memory and reasoning. They claim that the goal is to detect treatable disease, to provide lifestyle guidance to slow cognitive impairment, to identify patients who may be struggling to understand their doctor’s instructions, and to allow patients and families […]
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NPS Media Releases – UTI’s, Antibiotic Awareness, Antibiotic Campaign
20 November 2014 NPS MEDICINEWISE REDUCING ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE PROGRAM: URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS—EXPLORING ANTIBIOTIC TREATMENT The next phase of the NPS MedicineWise Reducing Antibiotic Resistance program for health professionals has launched today focused on the complex topic of managing urinary tract infections (UTIs). An interactive case study and the latest issue of Medicinewise News—which contains an […]
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Functional Medicine – Embracing All That Is Needed in Health
Functional Medicine is a system that addresses the underlying causes of disease, using a systems-oriented approach and engaging both patient and practitioner in a therapeutic partnership. It talks about cures rather than just management and embraces all that is evidence-based in integrative medicine and other complementary medicine modalities. It is an evolution in health practice […]
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Nurse practitioners ‘fill a gap’ in aged care
Editor’s Note: Nurse Practitioners established themselves as independent practitioners with prescribing rights about 12 years ago. Since that date they have been exploring opportunities for an expanded nurse practitioner role. Pharmacists on the other hand, while capable of an independent role and actually demonstrating that role through the development of Home Medicines Reviews (and derivatives) […]