Ear infections and nausea are among ailments we should be able get treated for through a pharmacy by 2026.
Health Minister Ryan Park announced at the Pharmacy Guild’s Pharmacy Connect Conference last week that work was underway to expand pharmacists’ scope of practice including:
• Acute otitis media (middle ear infection)
• Acute otitis externa (outer ear infection)
• Acute minor wound management
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• Acute nausea and vomiting
• Gastro-oesophageal reflux and gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD)
• Mild to moderate acne
• Mild, acute musculoskeletal pain
Subject to appropriate training and ongoing work in implementation work, the expanded service delivery could commence as soon as 2026.
Forbes' Sarah Hazell, Life Pharmacy Group, welcomed the announcement and said the team
Just recently, they've increased their scope of practice for some dermatological conditions including impetigo (school sores, psoriasis and shingles.
Locally, the group has invested in training and resources to ensure they can support the community
"We all know how full our GPs are, and how busy our emergency departments are - especially in rural and remote areas," Mrs Hazell said.
"(This) means patients will be able to come to their community pharmacy, see the pharmacist they know and are familiar with, and be able to get treatment for their minor ailments.
"It's not to replace the important role GPs play in the community and their patients' health - often times we would need to refer on to their local GP if needed
"I think it's exciting for pharmacy and really great for patients and especially patients in rural and remote areas of Australia where the GP shortage is becoming more of a problem."
Pharmacists will do further training to be able to provide the service - but that's an exciting development for the Forbes team.
"We've always had a focus on professional services at our pharmacies here in Forbes," Mrs Hazell said, that coming to the fore when pharmacies were able to vaccinate a significant percentage of the population during COVID-19.
"We spend a lot of time talking to our patients anyway, and Forbes is really well equipped to deal with this because we've got our clinic rooms available where we can sit down and have a private consultation with our patient and that's a crucial part of providing this expanded scope of practice service."
Ensuring the entire team is well trained, and introducing technology that frees up pharmacists' time, is also key.
"It's what we love to do, it's what we find more professionally rewarding," Mrs Hazell said.
NSW Health is consulting with universities on the development of suitable training as well as the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia on request supports for pharmacists including: condition specific training; and upskilling in clinical assessment, diagnosis, management and clinical documentation.
NSW Health has also agreed to authorise individual pharmacists who have successful completed the Queensland pilot training to deliver selected services in NSW from January 2025 onwards.
More than 490 pharmacies across the state have participated in the oral contraceptive pill trial since it began, delivering more than 1,800 consultations to women in NSW.
This follows the successful completion of the first phase of the trial in May 2024, which saw more than 3,300 NSW pharmacists provide more than 18,000 consultations to women aged 18 to 65 with symptoms of uncomplicated urinary tract infection (UTI). The UTI service transitioned to usual pharmacy care from 1 June 2024.
The third and final phase of the trial allowing pharmacists to manage common minor skin conditions is underway and will be running until early 2025.
A detailed evaluation of all three phases of the NSW Pharmacy Trial will be provided to NSW Health in 2025 and will inform future expansion of services.
Expanding the scope of practice of pharmacists forms part of the NSW Government’s broader efforts to alleviate pressure on GPs, a NSW Government statement to media said.
NSW Minister for Health Ryan Park acknowledged people were waiting days or even weeks to get an appointment.
“By empowering pharmacists to undertake consultations on more conditions, we can relieve the pressure on GPs and end the wait times," he said.
“People should be able to access treatment as and when they need it, and the expansion of this important initiative will improve access to care.”
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