THE Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP) has expressed serious concerns over the expanded role of pharmacists in South Australia (PD 26 Sep), where they can "prescribe medications without a diagnosis".
Dr Sian Goodson, RACGP SA Chair, called the move "reckless", warning it could lead to delayed treatments for serious conditions.
"Eczema, meningitis, and shingles look similar to an untrained eye," Goodson said, stressing that proper diagnosis requires years of training.
"Even someone who has finished medical school, but not trained as a GP or other specialist doctor, does not claim to be ready to make such big calls without supervision, yet the SA Government wants pharmacists to make these kinds of decisions off the back of a short online course."
Goodson reiterated that calling the course 'postgraduate training' is "stretching the definition as far as it can go".
However, there are areas where pharmacists can and should do more, such as with the industry's move into vaping and smoking cessation counselling.
"This is the kind of thing pharmacists can do with additional non-medical training, as we're seeing, and it makes sense given pharmacies are the place for patients to go to buy nicotine cessation medicines," said Goodson.
"But when a patient has been told a treatment will address a symptom and it just masks an underlying condition, that can easily add weeks or months before they actually get treatment.
"In the meantime, the untreated underlying condition just keeps getting worse, and can send them into hospital, when a GP could treat them in the community."
Goodson criticised the pharmacist-led prescribing decision as "politically driven" and warned it risks worsening patient outcomes.
"There's a reason doctors diagnose patients before we treat them," she commented.
MEANWHILE, the Pharmacy Guild of Australia's NSW Branch has praised the state government's decision to permanently allow pharmacists to provide resupply of the oral contraceptive pill, starting 28 Sep.
Women aged 18-49 who have used oral contraceptives for two years can access the pill from trained pharmacists without visiting a GP.
Catherine Bronger, Senior Vice President of the Guild's NSW branch, said the move "means easier access to contraception for thousands of women across NSW, saving them out-of-pocket costs from visiting a GP, while also alleviating pressure on our healthcare system". JG
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