Poll: is Pfizer's decision to deal direct good for pharmacy? : 16/12/2010 :

The big pharmacy news of the last week was Pfizer's decision to remove their products from pharmacy wholesalers and deal directly with pharmacies. AusPharm's mail has it that the new terms of trade aren't to everyone's taste with particular concerns expressed about the DHL involvement and whether or not rural and remote pharmacies will receive satisfactory service.

What do you think? Will Pfizer look after pharmacy? Please let us know what you think by voting in today's AusPharm poll.

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Pharmacists' Support Service expands into South Australia : 16/12/2010 :

The Victorian based Pharmacists’ Support Service (PSS), an independent incorporated association supported by the official bodies of pharmacy, is expanding its service to South Australia from 15 December 2010.

Pharmacists in South Australia will be able to contact this anonymous service for the cost of a local call. 

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December Medical Journal of Australia is open access : 16/12/2010 :

The 6/20 December 2010 issue of the Medical Journal of Australia is now online.

Every article in this Double Christmas Issue is open access for the next three weeks. There are a number of articles that may be of interest to 'listers. These include:

• Whither medicine? The expansion of non-doctor practice
• Obesity and global warming: are they similar "canaries" in the same "mineshaft"?
• Deconstructing cancer: what makes a good-quality news story?

The December issue of the MJA is here.

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Cancer rates increasing, but death rates falling : 16/12/2010 :

Cancer incidence rates have increased over the past 26 years, while cancer death rates have fallen, according to a report released on Tuesday by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare(AIHW).

The report, Cancer in Australia: an overview, 2010, shows that over 108,000 new cancer cases were diagnosed in 2007 . This was an increase on the previous year, when around 105,000 new cases were diagnosed.

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AusPharm CE: Polypill or Christmas cheer? : 15/12/2010 :

The last AusPharm CE topic for 2011 is Polypill or Christmas cheer? - it's been put together for us by Debbie Rigby.

"In 2003 the BMJ published an article proposing a 'Polypill' - a single combination pill daily that could reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease by over 80%. A tastier and perhaps safer alternative is the Polymeal. Evidence supports the benefits of wine, fish, dark chocolate, fruits, vegetables, garlic, and almonds."

Click here to do this Continuing Education activity. Or, if you prefer, you might like to take a look at our other CE activities here .

AusPharm gratefully acknowledges the financial support provided by the sponsors of our CE program, MIMS.

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Christmas asthma triggers - awareness : 14/12/2010 :

The National Asthma Council of Australia is raising awareness amongst asthmatics of Christmas asthma triggers.

Asthmatics need to be aware of potential triggers such as Christmas trees - the real ones, and the dust or mould being released from stored artificial trees and decorations. Their advice is to vacuum and wipe down artificial trees and decorations as they are unpacked, doing this outdoors if possible before putting them up indoors.

potential asthma triggers of the festive season include highly scented candles and excessive emotion. This holiday season is expected to be particularly problematic, given its coincidence with such a strong and extended hay fever season. This is due to recent rains, a prolonged grass growing season and widespread thunderstorm activity, which can stir up pollen in the air, increasing its potency.

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Health spending $5,190 per person in 2008–09 : 14/12/2010 :

Expenditure on health in Australia reached $112.8 billion, or $5,190 per person, in 2008–09, according to a report released last Friday by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

The report, Health expenditure Australia 2008–09, shows that after taking inflation into account, the $112.8 billion total was 5.8% or $6.2 billion more than for the previous year. Growth in total health expenditure has averaged 5.4% per year over the past 10 years.

The largest component of the increase was a $1.6 billion rise in spending on public hospital services, followed by spending on medications, which grew by $1.3 billion.

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Transparent TGA review panel publishes meeting papers : 14/12/2010 :

The first meeting of the review panel convened to investigate transparency of the TGA's processes and decisions was held on 7 December 2010. The panel agreed to publish meeting papers on the TGA website, and this has already happened. Twelve papers from a range of stakeholders have been published including the usual industry and consumer lobby groups, the AMA, Rural Health Alliance, NSW Clinical Excellence Commission and the TGA itself.

The panel will be seeking public input in February and March 2011 through a series of consultative meetings around Australia. Details will be made available on the TGA website.

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Updated TGA advisory - portable blood glucose meters : 14/12/2010 :

The TGA has issued an updated advisory notice on the risk of false high glucose readings under certain circumstances with blood glucose monitors utilising GDH-PQQ technology.

Original guidance was issued in 2005, but with continued reports of adverse events, an updated advisory notice has been issued as a precautionary measure. Details of the products of concern, and possible consequences, can be found in the advisory notice on the TGA website.

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My Hospitals website now live : 14/12/2010 :

The federal government's My Hospitals website is now live, making available basic information on the types of services at different hospitals across the nation. The site includes public and some private hospitals, with data (mostly from 2008-09) on measures such as waiting times, average discharge times, average bed numbers and types of outpatient services. The government believes the website will make it easier for the public to access information about how individual hospitals are performing.

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December NPS RADAR now out : 13/12/2010 :

The December issue of RADAR is now available on the NPS website.  It contains reviews of:

• Denosumab (Prolia) for postmenopausal osteoporosis: Denosumab (Prolia) is the first monoclonal antibody listed for postmenopausal osteoporosis.
• Exenatide (Byetta) for type 2 diabetes mellitus: Exenatide is an injectable hormone analogue that increases insulin secretion in response to food. It reduces HbA1c levels to a similar extent as insulin (glargine, aspart) and is listed for dual or triple therapy with metformin and/or a sulfonylurea.

as well as a number of 'in brief' news items.

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December Australian Prescriber full of pharmacists : 13/12/2010 :

While we did alert 'listers to the publication of the December issue of Australian Prescriber last week, we neglected to mention specifically that there were three artcles in it authored by pharmacists.

These are:

• Lisa Nissen and Greg Kyle's editorial on Non-medical prescribing in Australia
• Geraldine Moses and Treasure McGuire's Drug interactions with complementary medicines and
• Debbie Rigby's Drug interactions with complementary medicines

Surely this is the first time pharmacists have been so well represented in Australian Prescriber?

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Closing the Gap : 13/12/2010 :

Minister for Indigenous Health Warren Snowdon said a new report on the Australian Government’s multi-million dollar commitment to tackling chronic disease in Indigenous communities shows that progress is being made.

The Australian Government’s Indigenous Chronic Disease Package committed $805.5 million over four years to target chronic disease in indigenous people.

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RGH E-Bulletin: Combination antihypertensive products : 13/12/2010 :

The topic of this week's RGH E‑Bulletin is Combination antihypertensive products

"Hypertension is one of the most common causes of cardiovascular disease and death, being a major risk factor for stroke, coronary artery disease, chronic kidney disease and heart failure. Treatment-resistant hypertension is also a common occurrence, with an estimated 50 – 75% of patients being unable to reach blood pressure goals with drug monotherapy."

Click here to read the bulletin in full. The E‑Bulletins are archived on the AusPharmList website here.

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Professor Andrew McLachlan to head speaker list at offshore conference : 10/12/2010 :

The 2011 Offshore Refresher Conference will feature an exceptional faculty of speakers led by Professor Andrew McLachlan.

Speakers will cover a diverse range of professional and business topics which will give participants in the conference the latest information on ideas, techniques, developments and services which will ensure their professional development needs are met through attendance at the conference.

Professor McLachlan is a pharmacist involved in clinical pharmacology and research into the Quality Use of Medicines. His research interests are on the causes and consequences of variability in response to medicines and how this informs their quality use.

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Do you have the skills for evidence-based practice? : 10/12/2010 :

Results in this week's poll reflect that around 85% of pharmacists believe they have some degree of competence in understanding and interpreting the results of different types of studies and putting them into practice.

Half of those are fully confident that they have the sklls to practise evidence-based pharmacy, the other half feel they 'somewhat' have the skills to critically evaluate evidence and apply it to their practice as a pharmacist. Around 10% of voters weren't sure where there skills were at in this regard, and 5% flat-out acknowledged that they don't have these skills.

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Board publishes final proprietor guidelines : 10/12/2010 :

Following a period of consultation since the release of draft guidelines in September, the Pharmacy Board of Australia yesterday released a final version of its Guidelines on responsibilities of pharmacists when practising as proprietors.

The Board's summary reads: "A registered pharmacist who is a proprietor of, or who has a pecuniary interest in a pharmacy business must maintain, and be able to demonstrate an awareness of, the manner in which that pharmacy business is being conducted and, where necessary, intervene to ensure that the practice of pharmacy is conducted in accordance with applicable laws, standards and guidelines."

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Pharmacy Board drafting prescribing 'framework' : 10/12/2010 :

The Pharmacy Board of Australia yesterday released a communique detailing the ground covered at its November meeting. A number of issues were canvassed including the responsibilities of pharmacists when supplying schedule 2 and 3 medicines, access to pharmacy data by third parties and the responsiblities of pharmacists who are pharmacy owners.

Of particular interest is a move by the Board to work up a framework to guide professional groups and members of the profession who wish to develop proposals to seek endorsement for pharmacists to prescribe restricted medicines.

The Board says it will consult widely on any proposed registration standard before seeking the approval of Australian Health Workforce Ministerial Council, who needs to sign off on prescribing endorsement.

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New intranasal inhaler technique video launched : 10/12/2010 :

The National Asthma Council Australia has extended its online series of instructional ‘how to’ videos with the release of a 'Using Your Nasal Inhaler' video.

The new video gives health professionals and allergic rhinitis patients simple instructions on how best to administer intranasal corticosteroid sprays – and reduce the chance of causing nosebleeds.

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Reports published on aged care services in Australia : 09/12/2010 :

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has released two reports into the use of aged care facilities and in-home services in Australia during 2008-09.

The report - Residential aged care in Australia 2008–09: A statistical overview - shows that, not unexpectedly, overall provision of residential aged care increased from 2008 to 2009. It captures the expenditure, demographics, patterns of use, care levels, aged care funding and financial support arrangements.

The second report - Aged care packages in the community 2008–09: A statistical overview - analyses the services provided for aged care at home, such as Community Aged Care Packages, Extended Aged Care at Home, and Extended Aged Care at Home Dementia. Just over 47 000 Australians were using one of these packages in mid-2009.

These reports provide useful background statistics for pharmacists providing home medication reviews or specialising in geriatric pharmacy services.

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