Latest Edition - February 2010
Mobile MUR in Waikato
Waikato Community Pharmacy Group has introduced Mobile Medicine Use Review
service in response to the shortage of accredited pharmacists providing MURs in the
region.
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Contract agreed
DHBNZ, Pharmac, the Pharmacy Guild and other agents representing pharmacists
met last month to thrash out the Procedures Manual for the new pharmacy contract
which comes into effect on 1 March.
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Flu jabs in store?
The idea of flu jabs at pharmacies is gaining currency as health authorities prepare for
another battle with swine flu this winter.
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Buyer beware of dodgy websites
Medsafe is cracking down on websites offering prescription or so-called herbal
products.
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New RMI chair focuses on quality
The Researched Medicines Industry has undergone major changes recently,
appointing Denise Wood as chief executive in 2009, and more recently, Lex Henry as
chair. Change is good, so they say, and Mr Henry is looking forward to the challenge.
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Pharmacy profession still dominated by women
Women continue to dominate the pharmacy workforce in New Zealand.
According to the Pharmacy Council's latest workforce survey, there were a total of
3076 practising pharmacists in the country as at 30 June 2009 – 1807 of them women.
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December 2009
Prescribing – let's do it now!
Pharmacy Council has set the ball rolling on pharmacist prescribing.
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Warning on cherry picking
The one-size-fits-all approach to paying for dispensary services paves the way for a flood of “cherry-picking” pharmacies, the Pharmacy Guild says.
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Sweeteners in new contract
The interim pharmacy contract effective 1 March 2010 will now be valid for 18 months. While the dispensing fee will remain at $5.30 during this period, DHBs have attempted to remove some glitches that have an adverse impact on the delivery of pharmacy services and compensate for others.
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Wellington floats own group
Community pharmacies in Greater Wellington have come together to form a pharmacy group on the lines of their counterparts in Waikato, Canterbury, Nelson and Manawatu.
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Your opinion counts
Frustrated at not being able to prescribe NRT and other community pharmaceuticals? Now is the time to have your say, but you better be quick – submissions close on 24 December.
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clinic dispenses expired medicine
An Auckland father has taken a Tauranga clinic to task for giving expired medicine to his eight-year-old son with a throat infection.
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November 2009
Crackdown on cherry picking
The Pharmacy Guild is declaring war on pharmacists who are illegally “cherry-picking” easy prescriptions to fill and turning away the more time-consuming, complex scripts.
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Receivers, liquidators and APC suspended
Three Auckland pharmacies are under receivership and liquidation following financial troubles.
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Contract talks end
Consultation meetings for the new pharmacy contract effective March 2010 concluded on 14 October, with DHBs agreeing not to initiate any steps that would reduce funding for the community pharmacy.
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OTC ban not the solution
While the full impact of the Government’s decision to ban OTC sales of pseudoephedrine is yet unknown, strong opposition to the move has come from throughout the pharmacy sector.
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Pharmac recognises public good
Pharmac has agreed to pay for the public good component of Pharmacode.
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'No' to issuing Quit Cards…
If you want to quit smoking where would you get your Quit Card? Definitely not the local pharmacist.
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MOT says 'don't be afraid'
The Ministry of Transport says pharmacists have nothing to fear from the new legislation to prevent driving under the influence of drugs, despite concerns raised by a lawyer and former pharmacist.
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Medicines wastage – would Mr Nobody please stand up
In 2003, STAT dispensing was reintroduced to save health dollars, but pharmacies are copping the cost.
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October 2009
Still decoding Pharmacode
Toniq will cut pharmacies off, but LOTS won’t. Pharmac is still in discussions, the guild is pushing on and the DHBs are saying nothing.
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The anti-smacking legislation of the health profession?
A new law to stop drivers under the influence of drugs throws up serious questions for pharmacists. However, pharmacy bodies and the Ministry of Transport are urging the industry not to panic, saying the Land Transport Amendment Act does not impose any new liabilities or obligations on doctors and pharmacists.
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No big changes
Few drastic changes are expected in the new pharmacy contract that comes into effect on 1 March.
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New life for Life
It’s been signed, sealed and delivered. The Life Pharmacy and Pharmacybrands merger has been finalised, creating the country’s largest banner group with around 250 pharmacies.
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Pharmacist prescribers
Pharmacist prescribers are a step closer to becoming a reality.
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NZHPA setting minimum standards
The New Zealand Hospital Pharmacists Association is on a mission – to define core services and key performance indicators to ensure hospital pharmacy services are not eroded away.
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Nominate pharmacy leaders
Pharmacists are being encouraged to identify their best and brightest, and nominate them for the inaugural New Zealander of the Year awards.
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Dispensing at a loss
Moves are afoot to sort out problems with special foods dispensing which can leave pharmacists significantly out of pocket under the current contract with district health boards.
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September 2009
Pharmacode – pay up or else
Toniq and LOTS say they will not cut off the Pharmacode service to pharmacy non-payers on 1 September.
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Fiery reaction from pharmacists
The Pharmacy Guild’s hard-line approach on charging for Pharmacode has met with anger and resentment from some pharmacists who are accusing the guild of profiteering and holding the health sector to ransom.
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A marriage made in heaven?
It will be the wedding of the year if Life Pharmacy (LPL) and Pharmacybrands (PBL) get to the altar and exchange vows to create the largest pharmacy family in New Zealand’s history.
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Contract talks begin
Pharmacies in Nelson-Marlborough have chosen Canterbury Community Pharmacy Group as their agent for national pharmacy contract negotiations currently under way.
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Standards may cause alarm
The newly released draft standard for pharmacy is no cause for alarm, say members of the committee that helped draw up the standard, although at least two members say some pharmacists may be “a bit horrified” at first glance.
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After hours pharmacy services under scrutiny
After hours pharmacy services are under the spotlight as the Office of the Auditor-General starts scrutinising provision of after hours primary care services.
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NZ missing out on new medicines
Pharmac is under attack from the Researched Medicines Industry (RMI) over its failure to keep up with OECD countries in subsidising innovative medicines.
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August 2009
'My livelihood taken away'
A Hamilton pharmacy has been forced out of business following four local GPs’ abrupt decision to relocate their practices.
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Dunne takes next step for pharmacy
Associate health minister Peter Dunne is hosting a workshop in Wellington this month to identify actions that health ministry and the primary healthcare sector can take to ensure the pharmacist workforce is used effectively.
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'Keep pharmacy on politicians' radar'
The issue of pharmacy deregulation should not be considered settled for all time, although pharmacists have twice fought off the deregulation proposals.
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Codeine monitoring – is it necessary?
Mandatory monitoring by pharmacists is required to fight the “silent epidemic” of codeine addiction, according to Capital and Coast Health chief medical officer, Geoff Robinson.
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'The boss told me to do it' no excuse
More pharmacist employees are coming forward to voice concerns about possible wrongdoing by their employers, says Carolyn Hooper, chief executive of the Pharmaceutical Society’s Pharmacy Defence Association (PDA).
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Southland rural committee gone
Southland DHB has disestablished its Rural Health Advisory Committee and has devolved its functions and attached funding to local rural PHOs.
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Chloramphenicol to reclassify
Chloramphenicol eye drops and ointment are set to become pharmacist only medicines in New Zealand, probably later this year. Unlike most recent switches from prescription to non-prescription this was not a distributer-led reclassification.
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Minor ailment strategy for NZ?
Embracing the Minor Ailment Strategy adopted in the UK, and being considered in Australia would provide significant benefits to all stakeholders in the New Zealand health system, according to Tim Roper, executive director of the New Zealand Self Medication Industry.
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