PHARMACISTS who report suspicions that another health practitioner is behaving inappropriately, should be shielded from potential harassment, the profession's peak bodies believe.
Both the Pharmacy Guild of Australia and the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) voiced concerns about the protections provided to health professionals who notify the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), after an over-prescribing GP who attempted to murder a pharmacist (PD yesterday), failed in his bid to have his 15-year jail sentence reduced.
Court documents revealed the pharmacist flagged concerns with AHPRA after eight indigenous women went to the pharmacy she was working at on the same day with scripts for benzodiazepines written by the doctor.
When the GP was notified, the pharmacist's name was included on the notification document, and the doctor was later informed of the location of her pharmacy.
A Guild spokesperson told Pharmacy Daily the event was "one which regulatory authorities need to take into consideration in their handling of such matters".
"It is imperative that a pharmacist acting responsibly and ethically in the best interests of patients should not be subject to abuse or physical threats or violence," the spokesperson said.
"Thankfully this was an extremely rare and isolated incident."
PSA National President, Dr Chris Freeman (pictured), said AHPRA needed to provide protections for both the notifier and the practitioner at the centre of an investigation.
"PSA understands that following this incident AHPRA is reviewing its policies and procedures in relation to safeguarding the confidentiality of notifiers to ensure it is safe for people to report their concerns," he said.
"It is vital that such a reporting and notification process exists to protect consumers and promote confidence in the health care sector," Freeman said.
"However, it is also vital to protect the people involved in the process and PSA is pleased to see AHPRA taking further steps to address this.
"Unfortunately many pharmacists see practices that could warrant notification to AHPRA.
"We must ensure a system is in place to protect the public, and that it does not cause a disincentive for pharmacists to report unprofessional conduct."
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