A collaborative approach to patient care
A collaborative approach to patient care with a far greater utilisation of the medication expertise of
pharmacists has been advocated by the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia in its submission to
the Government on Medicare Locals.
Effective and enduring partnerships will underpin the capacity of a Medicare Local to meet the
needs of patients, PSA says.
“It will be critical to both the viability and credibility of Medicare Locals that the development of
genuine partnerships leads the establishment of the organisation and informs its operations,” the
submission says.
“As a means of assisting this process of forming partnerships, PSA would be pleased to work with
individual Medicare Locals to establish links with pharmacists in their community.
“PSA’s broad membership base encompasses community pharmacists, consultant pharmacists
(including pharmacists providing Home Medicines Reviews and Residential Medication
Management Reviews in collaboration with GPs), and hospital pharmacists working in both the
public and private sectors in locations across Australia.”
In the submission, PSA says it strongly supports measures to improve and reform Australia’s
health system and welcomes the establishment of Medicare Locals as a mechanism to improve
patients’ access to services by improving the coordination and integration of care both within the
primary health care sector and across other sectors of the health system.
The PSA says Medicare Locals are “fundamental elements of the Government’s National Health
and Hospitals Network which will build upon the strengths of our current health system, while
encouraging more locally responsive and flexible services, better supporting health practitioners
and patients, and improving integration and accountability across the health system”.
“Pharmacists are a key point of access into local communities. There are approximately 5000
community pharmacies across Australia each serving an average community of 4000 people and it
is estimated that the average person visits a pharmacy 14 times per year.
“Pharmacists are thus a valuable health professional resource who can provide practical
assistance in the evolution of Medicare Locals.”
PSA also stressed the need for “a sound and sustainable funding base” to enable Medicare Locals
to employ or contract staff with the skills required to help meet community needs and expectations.
The PSA submission concluded by saying the Society looked forward to working with the
Government and other stakeholders in the further design and implementation of these important
reforms.
The submission is available at www.psa.org.au under the ‘What’s New’ button.