No prescribing in PSA model
October 2, 2015
THE Pharmaceutical Society has
distanced itself from the Pharmacy
Guild’s proposal for pharmacist
integration into general practice
(PD yesterday), with PSA stressing
that its model “incorporates roles
that are within the pharmacist’s
current scope of practice”.
The Guild proposal released this
week said pharmacists could work
in GP clinics if they had their scope
of practice expanded to include
prescribing, with a range of other
criteria including “not duplicating
services already provided in local
community pharmacies”.
The PSA has responded to the
Guild position paper, saying that
while some international models
for pharmacists in general practice
do include pharmacist prescribing,
“it is important to acknowledge
the different economic, policy and
workforce issues in these settings.
“PSA supports Health Workforce
Australia’s work on health
professional prescribing,” and is not
seeking to introduce pharmacist
prescribing with its GP clinic model,
said PSA acting national president,
Michelle Lynch.
“There are many important
quality use of medicine activities
that a pharmacist may undertake
within the general practice
setting which do not require the
pharmacist to be a prescriber”.
Lynch said there was strong
evidence to support PSA’s flexible
model of pharmacists working
in GP clinics “over and above
other proposals,” noting the PSA/
AMA plan “does not exclude local
pharmacists currently working
in community pharmacies from
participating in the evidence-based
model”.
PSA also stressed that the Society
wants to see new funding for the
proposal “as we believe that access
to 6CPA services and funds should
be ultimately prohibited within the
practice protocol for the model”.
Lynch said the pharmacist role
would be autonomous within
the surgery and protocols should
be implemented to ensure close
cooperation with local pharmacies.
“PSA is committed to working
with all stakeholders, including the
Pharmacy Guild, to progress this
model,” Lynch added.
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