Comment
How well is your pharmacy serving you?
Pharmacy is one of the last protected industries in Australia. But do pharmacists deserve their protected status? An inquiry is underway to consider opening up the industry to greater competition. VERONICA SHEEN of the Council on the Ageing (COTA) takes an older person’s view.
To own a pharmacy you must be a trained and registered pharmacist. The distribution and sale of pharmaceuticals is a huge business. So this means a pharmacy shop is more or less guaranteed to generate a handsome income for the owner. But should things remain this way?
The local pharmacist is an important person in the life of many older people who may be taking a range of medications for several conditions. The pharmacist will know better than anyone about the possible reactions and interactions of these drugs. In addition, many seniors build up a personal relationship with the pharmacist. All this provides an important form of protection for older Australians.
But it’s time to ask how well the system is working. COTA is posing the following questions and putting forward suggestions as to how pharmacy service could be improved.
What about older people in rural and remote areas who do not have a local pharmacist? Or people who are house-bound? Perhaps mail order, or an agreement with a local store to get needed medications, might be better arrangements. These could be supported by a toll free consumer drug information service. This could include advice on timing and level of dosages, side-effects, possible interactions, adverse reactions and disposal of unused medicines. There is also a strong case for making such information available on the Internet, in both English and community languages.
Even in cities, it’s important to ensure that pharmacies are located within convenient walking distance for older people – usually in local shopping centres. Pharmacists could also be encouraged to co-locate with general practitioners. Maybe this could involve co-ownership of medical facilities with general practitioners.
There are also consumer cost issues to consider. Are pharmaceuticals as cheap as they could be? Especially over-the-counter and pharmacy-only medicines that are not subsidised by the Government? These medications can add a lot to the weekly budget of an older pensioner. COTA believes that pharmacies should be clearly showing the prices of all the medications they stock.
And are people getting the best service possible from their pharmacists? Perhaps training in information technology, communication skills and business skills could result in pharmacists offering a wider range of consumer services. For example, mechanisms could be developed for tracking of a person’s total use of pharmaceuticals irrespective of which shop they were bought in. This would allow the pharmacist to better monitor possible drug interactions. The result: healthier customers.
