Pharmacy Daily | First cohort starts full scope training

THE North Queensland Community Pharmacy Scope of Practice Pilot (Pilot) is officially under way with 175 registered community pharmacists embarking on higher education and training through the Queensland University of Technology.

Under the guidance of the Queensland University of Technology, James Cook University and the Australasian College of Pharmacy, two cohorts of pharmacists will undertake graduate certificate level, evidenced-based training, which is currently used in other Australian non-medical prescribing pathways.

Chris Owen, Queensland Branch President of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia said the response from community pharmacists to be part of the Pilot has been extremely positive.

"Places for the first cohort were filled in less than a week with 175 pharmacists starting their journey.

"With the second cohort allocation close to reaching capacity, this Pilot is set to modernise primary healthcare by giving patients greater accessibility to seek treatment for everyday common conditions, which will remove unnecessary wait times to see GPs or patients presenting to an emergency department.

"I'm so proud that the first independent prescriber in Australia will come out of North Queensland.

"It is a testament to the hundreds of committed community pharmacy professionals ready to embrace working to their full scope of practice," says Owen.

The Pilot will allow community pharmacists in North Queensland to prescribe medicines for common conditions such as nausea and vomiting, reflux, and mild skin conditions, and provide health and wellbeing services including hormonal contraception, oral health screening, weight management and support to quit smoking.

"It will also let pharmacists prescribe medicines as part of structured chronic disease management programs such as cardiovascular disease risk reduction, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Owen goes on to explain that the Pilot framework will continue to ensure meaningful collaboration between a patient, their pharmacist and GP through active communication and referrals, meaning patients will have more options for getting timely access to treatment.

"At the end of the year patients will be able to receive treatment by trained community pharmacists in a safe and private consultation room when they need it," said Owen.

The second cohort will begin training through James Cook University on 03 Jul, with the first occasion of service expected to be delivered in North Queensland by the trained group of cohort one at the end of this year.