Pharmacy Daily | Board looks at prescribing

THE Pharmacy Board of Australia has reiterated that it is “open to exploring possibilities” which would see pharmacists endorsed to prescribe scheduled medicines. A communique released yesterday following the Board’s latest meeting confirms that the Board has requested its Policies, Codes and Guidelines Committee “to develop a framework to guide professional groups and members of the profession in pursuing a proposal for endorsement entitlement under the National Law”. Prescribing endorsement must be approved by the Australian Health Workforce Ministerial Council, which includes the approval of a registration standard relevant to the endorsement. The Board said it would consult widely on any proposed registation standard before seeking the Ministerial Council’s approval. The meeting also resolved that provisional registrants should be granted a full year’s registration from the time their application is apporved, rather than expiring on 30 Nov each year as for general registration. The Board also discussed access to pharmacy data by third parties, and urged pharmacists to “exercise extreme caution” in considering requests for information from pharmaceutical company representatives. “Pharmacists must not allow unrestricted access to dispensing systems by third parties,” the communique said. The board has also extended the exemption period for international students to comply with English language standards to 31 Mar 2011 for interns transitioning into the national system.

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