Pharmacists willing to be organ donors : 24/06/2011 :

In the context of the federal government's recent push to increase the number of Australians who are organ donors through the The DonateLife 'Know their wishes, OK? campaign this week's AusPharm poll asked 'listers to tell us whether they'd thought seriously about this.

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CCTV footage inside a Christchurch Pharmacy during quake : 24/06/2011 :

This week's 'Photo of the week' is a video, sent along by expat Kiwi David Haworth.

It's scary stuff, particularly when you bear in mind this is an aftershock.

Amazingly, no customers were in the pharmacy at the time.

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Positive patient outcomes shown in QUMAX evaluation : 24/06/2011 :

The formal evaluation of the Quality Use of Medicines Maximised for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples (QUMAX) Program has now been released and is available online here.

The QUMAX Program was jointly developed by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia and National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) as part of the Fourth Community Pharmacy Agreement and, as such, was funded by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing.

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Indigenous health expenditure reaches $3.7 billion : 24/06/2011 :

In 2008-09, 3.5% ($3.7 billion) of Australia’s total health expenditure was on Indigenous Australians, who make up 2.5% of the Australian population, according to a report released today by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

This compares with $3.1 billion spent two years earlier.

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Guild farewells QCPP stalwart : 24/06/2011 :

Long serving Guild Director, Jenny Bergin (pictured right), has called it a day.

The former Director of Quality Assurance and Standards (QAS) joined the Guild in 2000 as the organisation’s Pharmacist Consultant.  Prior to arriving at the Guild, Jenny was already a highly accomplished community pharmacist.  Jenny’s role evolved into the Director of Community Pharmacy Practice which included responsibility for Guild Training.

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PPI start-up payments increased : 24/06/2011 :

The total value of start-up payments for pharmacies registering for Pharmacy Practice Incentives by June 30 has been significantly increased.

The total amount for the three start-up payments, based on the registration uptake, has now been confirmed at $8070. Start–up payments are for:

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AusPharm CE: Update on asthma : 23/06/2011 :

The next AusPharm CE topic for 2011 is Update on asthma - it's been put together for us by Debbie Rigby.

"Asthma is a chronic condition affecting one in ten Australians. The severity of asthma ranges from mild, intermittent symptoms, to severe and persistent wheezing and shortness of breath, impacting significantly on quality of life and health burden. Asthma is characterised by reversible airflow limitation, inflammation with excessive mucous production and an exaggerated bronchoconstrictive response to several stimuli (airway hyperresponsiveness)."

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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Deloitte Access Economics releases 'Pfizer' report : 23/06/2011 :

ccording to a Deloitte Access Economics report released yesterday and commissioned by two of the three main Australian pharmacy wholesalers the Federal Government’s ability to guarantee timely access to PBS medicines for all Australians is threatened by Pfizer's decision to supply direct to pharmacy and bypass the traditional (wholesaler) supply chain.

The report warns that if the four largest manufacturers of PBS medicines were also to adopt exclusive supply arrangements the cost of delivering the remaining medicines covered by the CSO agreement would rise by 37 per cent per unit, adding that policy intervention is required to sustain the CSO agreement.

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Pharmacy Practice Review – Reducing cardiovascular disease risk : 22/06/2011 :

The latest NPS Pharmacy Practice Review helps pharmacists deliver best practice care for patients using a statin and/or ezetimibe.

Pharmacy Practice Review - Reducing cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk is part of the 2011 NPS therapeutic program on CVD risk and guiding lipid management for health professionals and builds on the NPS vision to encourage quality use of medicines.

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First report card on preventing and managing chronic disease : 22/06/2011 :

Australia’s first performance report card on chronic disease was released this week by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

The report, Key indicators of progress for chronic disease and associated determinants: data report, presents, for the first time, data on a set of 42 indicators related to chronic disease.

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BowelScreen Australia program a hit in pharmacies : 22/06/2011 :

Pharmacists have shown strong support for bowel cancer prevention with one in two pharmacies now offering the BowelScreen Australia program.

Bowel Cancer Australia chief executive officer Julien Wiggins said it was a great result for such a young program.

BowelScreen Australia kits or information on interactive self-service touch screens can now be found in more than 2,500 pharmacies around the country, including some of the major chains,” he added. “By September, we expect this to have grown to approximately 2,800 pharmacies.”

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More older Australians seek treatment for opioid addiction : 22/06/2011 :

The number of Australians receiving pharmacotherapy treatment for dependence on opioid drugs continues to rise, and the proportion of older clients is also increasing, according to a report released today by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

The findings of the National Opioid Pharmacotherapy Statistics Annual Data Collection: 2010 report show that on a snapshot day in 2010 there were over 46,000 clients who received pharmacotherapy for opioid dependence.

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PHARMeFOOTY weekly wrap : 22/06/2011 :

AFL Round 13

AFL Round 13 saw 28 tippers select the 8 winners correctly. Again the result came down to cumulative margin with Brendan Power from Reicher & Szylit taking first place. In 2nd spot was Michael Scavone with Irma Lombardi of Marden Amcal  taking 3rd position.

NRL Round 15

NRL Round 15 saw just 2 tippers select all the 7 winners.  Judy Oliver had the best margin tip so takes the weekly prize. In 2nd place was   Tony Sassano with Mike Kaluschke from Red Hill Day and Night Pharmacy finishing in 3rd spot.

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Roxon bows to consumer pressure on PBS : 22/06/2011 :

In an apparent response to consumer pressure Health Minister Nicola Roxon yesterday announced the September 1 PBS listing of a number of new drugs including some that had been previously deferred despite positive PBAC recommendations.

There is a sting in the tail, however, with Ms Roxon apparently linking future PBS listing to Coalition support for other government initiatives.

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Guild: award flexibility welcomed but us too please : 22/06/2011 :

The Pharmacy Guild yesterday welcomed the decision by Fair Work Australia to ease the three hour minimum shift requirement imposed on students wanting to work in after-school retail jobs but pointed out that the decision does not flow on automatically to other awards, including the Pharmacy Industry Award 2010.

The National President of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, Kos Sclavos said that the same provisions should apply for community pharmacy businesses.

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Poll: are you an organ donor? : 22/06/2011 :

We reported yesterday on the federal government's recent push to increase the number of Australians who are organ donors. The DonateLife 'Know their wishes, OK? campaign prompts Australians to make sure they know the organ and tissue donation wishes of family members.

Have you thought about this? Are you willing to be an organ donor should worse come to worse? Do your family members know your wishes?

Please let us know by voting in this week's AusPharm poll.

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Know your family members’ organ and tissue donation wishes, OK? : 21/06/2011 :

All Australians are being encouraged to know the organ and tissue donation wishes of their loved ones in a compelling new television campaign announced recently by the Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing, Catherine King.

The DonateLife 'Know their wishes, OK? campaign prompts Australians to make sure they know the organ and tissue donation wishes of family members, because one day they may be asked - 'did they want to be an organ and tissue donor?'," Ms King said.

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Sneezesafe on again in 2011 : 21/06/2011 :

Once again in 2011 the SneezeSafe education campaign is being delivered to consumers. The campaign, designed to help kids learn basic respiratory hygiene in the classroom and at home, is being managed by Kleenex and supported by NPS.

Launched last year, SneezeSafe received a staggering response from the nation’s school-teachers and parents, with 13.9% of all Australian primary and pre-schools, that’s 150,865 students, taking part in the program.

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Trans Tasman Therapeutic Products Agency back on the agenda : 21/06/2011 :

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and New Zealand Prime Minister John Key yesterday agreed to the the phased establishment of a joint Australia-New Zealand Therapeutic Products Agency (ANZTPA). ANZTPA will progressively establish common regulatory arrangements for therapeutic goods and a single trans-Tasman entry point for business.
 
According to Ms Gillard, a single regulatory framework will provide health benefits for consumers, reduced regulatory costs for industry and greater efficiency for governments.

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Indigenous Australians 6 times more likely to suffer end stage kidney disease : 21/06/2011 :

A new report released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) today, End-stage kidney disease in Australia: Total incidence 2003-2007, shows that during the 2003-2007 period, there were nearly 21,500 new cases of end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) in Australia - this amounts to about 21 cases per 100,000 people.

Men have total incidence rates 1.5 times as high as for women, and make up about 54% of cases. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have particularly high rates of ESKD: more than 6 times as high as for non-Indigenous Australians.

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