THE Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia is calling for changes to the structure of remuneration for medicines and community pharmacy services, "to break down the barriers between pharmacy decisions within the hospital and community settings".
According to the SHPA submission to the Review of Pharmacy Remuneration and Regulation, Australia needs an integrated approach to the funding of pharmacist services, as protection against medicines mismanagement in a health system which must address the needs of an ageing population and escalating levels of chronic disease.
SHPA president Michael Dooley said there should be uniform funding across pharmacy, with payments for services provided by pharmacists focusing on the delivery of health outcomes.
Dooley said healthcare services delivered by pharmacists must be provided in settings conducive to the delivery of professional services, adding "the community retail pharmacy setting must be significantly reformed to enable this to consistently occur".
He said remuneration of cognitive services must include recognition that not all practising pharmacists can be considered medicine specialists, with "further credentialing and accreditation" required for delivery of more comprehensive services.
"Individual pharmacists should be remunerated directly as a provider of a cognitive service, in line with other health professionals," the SHPA submission reads.
The Society also noted it should be a key stakeholder in contributing to future pharmacy agreements, considering more than 20% of the PBS is spent in hospitals.
The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 06 Oct 16
To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 06 Oct 16
