NURSE practitioners in Australia can now prescribe SGLT-2 inhibitor therapy, specifically Jardiance (empagliflozin 10mg), through the PBS for chronic heart failure treatment under a shared-care model with doctors.
Pharmacists are being informed that the new prescribing ability applies to both initial and continuing therapy for eligible adults with symptomatic heart failure, regardless of their ejection fraction.
The updated prescribing rights cover the PBS listings for Jardiance for both heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, as well as the 60-Day dispensing listing for HFrEF patients.
Prof Andrew Sindone, a cardiologist and heart failure expert, welcomed the change, noting that chronic heart failure affects around 480,000 Australians, with over 60,000 new cases annually.
"The incidence and impact of chronic heart failure requires all parts of the healthcare system to work in sync, including nurse practitioners with expertise in complex disease management," Sindone explained.
Dirk Otto, General Manager of Boehringer Ingelheim Australia and New Zealand, called the change a "practice-changing moment" that benefits patients, and the health system.
"The move is consistent with-recommended multidisciplinary heart failure management in which nurse practitioners are a key player," said Otto.
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