THE Pharmacy Guild of Australia has issued a public message to Australian Medical Association (AMA) Federal President Tony Bartone, seeing acting Guild president Anthony Tassone urge him to embrace an expanded scope of practice for pharmacists.
Bartone will today address the National Press Club, with Tassone (pictured) saying "there's nothing surer in the life of a community pharmacist than an onslaught of abuse and derision from doctors' organisations the moment anyone dares to mention a broader scope of practice for pharmacists.
"Never mind that the greater utilisation of pharmacists will benefit patients; will be within existing limits of pharmacists' expertise; regulated by a national practice board; is already in place in many comparable countries; will always be conducted collaboratively with doctors and other health professionals; will save money in the health system; and relieve some of the stress on GP waiting rooms and emergency departments.
"Nope - you can set your watch by the predictable and often hysterical organisations such as the AMA and the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners," he wrote.
Tassone cited the "latest storm of overblown claims and scaremongering" triggered by the Guild's submission to the Queensland Parliamentary Inquiry into aspects of pharmacy regulation and ownership (PD 16 Jul).
In response to a suggestion of the potential for pharmacists to contribute more to the health system in the state, the AMA warned that "people could die" as a result of such a move.
The acting Guild president noted that similar reactions from the AMA occurred several years ago when pharmacists first began being trained to administer influenza vaccinations.
Despite dire predictions by doctors' groups over the last two years, hundreds of thousands of Australians have been immunised at community pharmacies, "unambiguously safe and convenient for patients and boosting the community's level of immunity against a killer disease".
Tassone also mentioned recent claims by RACGP president Bastian Seidel, who made the "extraordinary admission" that some patients with complex conditions are being refused by doctors because they are not financially viable.
He said making better and broader use of pharmacists in Australia's 5,700 community pharmacies "makes great sense to any objective observer".
The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 25 Jul 18
To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 25 Jul 18
