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EDITORIAL
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Site changes
* E-Pharma conference29-31st May 2002
The
Ides of March...Part Three
By Neil Johnston
This is
the last article in a series of three that discusses the thinking of
a group of senior government officials (state and federal) formed into
a committee known as the "COAG Senior Officials Working Group".
This working group, had as its task, the development of a series of
recommendations in respect of the Wilkinson Review into Australian Pharmacy.
They were the "power behind the throne" and their comments
did not necessarily support pharmacist ownership of pharmacies, or other
prime pharmacy issues.
In fact, if you closely follow the New Zealand experience, you can read
a capability into the Working Group comments, to convert to an open
licencing system.
As before, this article should be read in parallel with my second article
regarding the New Zealand loss of pharmacy ownership control.
Drawing
the Line...Where?
By Rollo Manning
The world
becomes a smaller place when it comes to chronic diseases. Renal disease
and the need for dialysis is growing annually across the globe, as budgets
blow out for expensive medicines.
In Australia questions are being asked on the cost of a nationally funded
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
Some balance needs to be brought into the discussion to ensure the people
in real need continue to obtain the benefit, and those who can afford
to pay more meet a greater share.
Pharmacists are part of the equation, and can expect to be targeted
for examination if not in this year's budget, certainly in the near
future.
Trust-A
Fleeting Moment or Pharmacy's Greatest Weapon?
By Ken Stafford
We read
with interest how pharmacy consistently scores well in "most trusted
profession" surveys but it was only recently I came to realise
how strong this trust can be.
As part of my liaison duties with other government bodies I was making
a presentation to a group of "peer educators" on drugs and
falls.
This group, made up of lay people with an interest in the topic, became
quite animated at times and opened up to me about their medications
and concerns.
I thought nothing of this because, like all of my colleagues, I am quite
used to hearing somewhat intimate details of my clients' lives. It happens
every day.
Do
Pharmacies Provide Healthcare?
By Simon Rudderham
It doesn't
take a genius to realize that the Role of Pharmacy in health care profession
and in the community has changed considerably in the last fifty years.
No longer merely the stockist of prescription medication, and cough
and cold relief, pharmacy has found itself a new niche through the DMMR
system, better collaboration and the proposed disease state management.
Of course this is not "new" as such, with many pharmacies
and pharmacists providing less formal versions of these innovations
before governmental financial incentives were offered.
Getting
Down to (Prescription) Business
By Peter Sayers
With escalating
costs on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, and the rationing of health
resources now a reality, Pharmacy once again must look at where the
pieces may fall, and restructure their health offerings within a new
mosaic.
While there is a current emphasis on cognitive services (and rightly
so), to not devote some resources to the core business of dispensing
now, may result in a bad case of heartburn later.
Perhaps this is as good a time as any to begin a restructuring process
for dispensing, in terms of work flows, what its real components are,
and how it is marketed.
The time-management aspects of work flows are under particular stress,
so a "time-out" is required to make some particularly hard
decisions.
SUPA
Goes To Budapest
By Andrew Snow
Editor's
Note: Andrew Snow is highlighting a student initiative of which he is
part.
Problem: How to you get a delegation of Australian pharmacy students
across toEurope on the traditional student budget?
It is obviously important for Australia to be represented at this type
of conference, so are there any generous benefactors out there willing
to provide support?
Getting
the Message Through
By Jon Aldous
With any
new system there is a need to communicate the vision and benefits arising
from such a system, to all professionals involved with a specific patient
service. To do anything in isolation will not prove successful, and
is a waste of valuable resources.
Taking the time to communicate effectively, whether you are in a hospital
or a community setting, is the key to ensuring new services actually
begin to work.
Ensuring that an efficient liaison exists between the hospital setting
and the community pharmacist/GP setting, is seen primarily as a hospital
responsibility.
But opportunities must exist for developing a creative two-way communication,
and community pharmacists ought to mobilise, to assist in making a contribution
to the whole.
Mutual
Trust and Respect -
The Imperative Interprofessional Ingredient
to Good Patient Care
By Heather Pym
The basis
of all good relationships is mutual trust and respect.
This essential is especially applicable to professional relationships
and where a third party, that is a patient is concerned. The prime requisite
of care for patients devolves around the professional relationship and
those inter professional relationships that result during the care process.
With out them the patient's care is compromised and each professional
is failing badly.
This area of professional respect has recently been made apparent to
me during the course of my work in the GP Division.
NZ
Ownership Loss (Part Three)
By Neil Johnston
This is
the third and final installment of the ownership saga which recently
occurred in New Zealand.
We continue the government's rationale, interspersed with comment from
an Australian perspective.
As before, this article should be read in conjunction with my other
article series ("The Ides of March") which illustrates the
real thinking by government power brokers within Australia.
There is a definite commonality in the strategies of the Australian
and New Zealand governments, the only difference is that New Zealand
struck first.
This precedent, and what evolves, is sure to be utilised against Australian
pharmacists sometime in the future.
The
ICTeHealth Project - its Scope and Implications
Released Through Pat Gallagher
Editor's
Note: The following information has been passed on from the desk of
Patrick Gallagher, who is deeply interested in most aspects of Health
Information Technology. The information has been supplied from the ICTeHealth
Project, and is shared with readers to illustrate the diversity of IT
activity currently evolving within the health sector, also to raise
the profile of initiatives that ultimately may impact upon your workplace.
There is also a growing concern that some developments associated with
the Better Medication Management System may eventually prove too expensive
and impractical.
This can only result from poor advice and communication.
While you have to fail sometimes, in order to succeed, let us all endeavour
to do so with minimal cost. The information that follows is, therefore,
timely.
After
Hospital Experience : The Transition Period
By Ayron Teed
Last issue
I explained my philosophy for promoting and strengthening pharmacy activities
in hospitals - the department was the secure area where medications
were stored etc.; the pharmacy was wherever the pharmacist was - out
in the wards counselling patients, providing information for nurses,
discussing treatments with the doctors (and resident doctors).
Did I hear someone say, "That's all very well for hospital pharmacy.
The pharmacist can lock the door of the department and spend time in
the wards. He can plan his day to include case conferences, discharge
planning meetings. There's no pressure from customers coming in to the
pharmacy to interrupt his preparation for the lecture he's about to
give to the nurses.
CLASSIFIED
ADVERTISEMENTS
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upgraded classified advertisements section.
The i2P site gives a constant exposure, which is reinforced by a monthly
mail-out.
i2P is set to become the employment site of choice.
You can place your advertisement directly on our site, where you will
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You may delete your details at any time.
As the volume of activity increases, we will be investing in even more
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related to employment, sale of businesses, provision to service student
needs and goods and services for sale.
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in the menu bar at the top of the page.
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