ACCREDITATION standards to equip pharmacists to prescribe autonomously are set to be developed by the Australian Pharmacy Council (APC) following a request from the Pharmacy Board of Australia.
The Board said the decision to develop accreditation standards for pharmacist prescribing programs follows and complemented its prior extensive work that explored the capacity for competent and safe prescribing by pharmacists.
"If state and territory governments determine that pharmacists can make an important and safe contribution to the delivery of healthcare to the public by prescribing a wider range of medicines autonomously, and if pharmacists are authorised to do so, accreditation standards for pharmacist prescribing education programs would be an important resource to ensure that pharmacists complete an accredited and approved education program, and are competent to prescribe," the Board said.
"The Board has decided to develop accreditation standards now, for completion by Dec 2023, so that they can inform future development of models of autonomous prescribing by pharmacists and the education programs that pharmacists would need to complete."
The Board's decision to authorise the APC to develop accreditation standards has been welcomed by pharmacy bodies, including the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) and the Pharmacy Guild of Australia.
A PSA spokesperson told Pharmacy Daily that the organisation "has always strongly advocated for pharmacists to be able to practise to the top of their scope, including pharmacist prescribing in specific circumstances".
"The Board's decision to develop accreditation standards for pharmacist prescribing education programs is a very positive step toward facilitating pharmacists to play a greater role in the primary healthcare of our communities," the spokesperson said.
Guild National President, Trent Twomey, said the move was a very positive step to help improve patient access to medicines.
"The ability to autonomously prescribe must be a core task for all pharmacists with general registration if our profession is to offer universal primary healthcare to all Australians," he said.
"Autonomous pharmacist prescribing will improve access to treatment options for patients with conditions that can be managed by a pharmacist.
"And it is a very positive move that the Board has decided on the autonomous prescribing model which is necessary if pharmacist prescribing is to contribute to the delivery of sustainable, responsive and affordable access to medicines for patients."
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