Collaboration is key – PSA
November 2, 2010
THE Pharmaceutical Society of
Australia has proferred an olive
branch of peace to the Pharmacy
Guild, saying the organisations
need to work together to ensure the
long-term sustainability of the
pharmacy industry in Australia.
PSA President Warwick Plunkett
has warned that community
pharmacy will need to “undertake
major structural changes” over the
next two years, due to “inevitable
outcomes from the government’s
primary health-care reform agenda
and the enormous financial impact
that will result from generic
medicine price disclosure”.
He said that PSA is keen to work
with the guild “to address these
issues and develop an agreed
common approach that can deliver
a successful outcome for
pharmacists, government and
consumers”.
The attempted rapprochement
follows a provocative speech at the
opening of the Pharmacy Australia
Congress (PD Fri) in which Plunkett
criticised the Guild for its exclusive
approach during the Fifth
Agreement negotiations.
Plunkett said the PSA wanted to
work closely with the Guild in a
number of areas including the
5CPA’s Medicines Use Reviews and
Clinical Interventions.
“Working with the Guild and
other stakeholders will help ensure
that these and other programs are
efficacious and produce the best
possible results for consumers and
for the aims of health-care
reforms,” Plunkett said.
“PSA believes the future of the
pharmacy profession is reliant on
the provision of remunerated
professional services and together
with the Guild is working to ensure
these programs are properly and
quickly developed and implemented.”
He said that PSA’s new field
officer program, which aims to
provide on-the-spot support for
pharmacies undergoing practice
management changes, also
provided “great scope for
collaborative action.
“There are demonstrably many
areas where PSA and the Guild are
working closely together for the
common benefit of the pharmacy
profession,” he said, adding:”It is
important that this collaboration
only grow and strengthen into the
future”.
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