AMA’s latest attack on NQPSPP “a new low”.
The Australian Medical Association’s (AMA’s) latest effort to force the Queensland Government to abandon the planned North Queensland Pharmacy Scope of Practice Pilot, is based on “false information”, the Pharmacy Guild of Australia claims.
Hitting back at suggestions made by AMA National President, Dr Omar Khorshid (Pharmacy Daily 21 July), Guild Queensland Branch President, Chris Owen, said the medical organisation’s “focus on pharmacists’ scope of practice rather than working towards solutions to increase patients’ timely access to primary health care services”, was disappointing.
“The AMA are again spreading lies and false information demonstrating they have no interest in ethical behaviour, patient safety or working collaboratively with pharmacists,” Owen said.
“In short, the AMA’s position is that they want patients to wait longer for care while in pain, control community pharmacist’s scope of practice and bury their head in the sand about Doctor Block and pressure on local emergency departments in North Queensland.”
“Community pharmacists are not trying to replace GPs, rather community pharmacists want to have a more active role in fully meeting the needs of their patients and to work more collaboratively within the healthcare system.”
Owen also slammed the AMA’s efforts to use “First Nations people as a pawn” in the ongoing inter-professional turf war as “a new low”.
More details in tomorrow’s issue of Pharmacy Daily.
