THE opening plenary of Pharmacy Connect 2025 kicked off yesterday with a state of the industry panel discussion, with the eighth community pharmacy agreement (8CPA), digital health, technology and scope of practice prominent talking points.
On the panel was Guild NSW Branch President Mario Barone; Guild National President Trent Twomey; Natalie Sirianni, Director of Attain; and Karen Booth, Chair of the Australian Self-Care Alliance.
Booth noted that digital health, including e-scripts and My Health Record, is being increasingly embraced by patients and health professionals alike, allowing sharing of health information and creating data that will help predict what products and services are needed, among other things.
"They're working on a new platform that allows the different systems to talk to each other, and once that happens, it will be easier for all of us to access information from other partners," she added.
Sirianni took attendees through the last few years of pharmacist sentiment around buying and selling, with uncertainty around 60-day dispensing bringing the market to a standstill, then the 8CPA bringing it back to life.
"Younger aspiring owners in particular are excited about the opportunities presented by expanded scope," Sirianni said.
Barone pointed to the solid foundation for the industry established by the 8CPA, with pharmacists now asking how they can train themselves and their teams to embrace the future of pharmacy.
In particular, they are looking to Queensland with a view to moving their systems towards that model, with scope of practice and pharmacist prescribing, he said.
Pointing to the Guild's 10-year vision document, Towards 2035, Twomey reiterated the Guild's aim of pharmacies becoming primary health care hubs over the next 10 years, with digital technology a key to success.
"We need to use digital technology to ensure that the consumer is in charge, and whichever door they choose to walk through, whether it is to receive services from a GP, a nurse, or a pharmacist, we take on the obligation to communicate with those other partners.
He also explained the Guild is working with software vendors to enable this communication, so pharmacists can focus on the person in front of them.
"If you want to maintain the value of your practice as an owner and yourself as an individual, you have to make sure that you embrace automation and digital innovation and direct your time to the high value stuff," Twomey said.
Sirianni said that, above all, it is critical that pharmacists stay on top of technology and scope and all the other changes happening apace, pointing to the example of pharmacists a few years ago who were not interested in delivering vaccinations and ended up selling their businesses.
"From a purely financial point of view, your business will suffer if you don't stay on top of what's actually happening," she suggested. KB
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