Benefits of GP pharmacists being overlooked, healthcare sector argues

General practice pharmacists (GPPs) typically work on site at medical centres, collaborating with GPs and other health professionals to improve medicine safety and manage patients with chronic illness.

"They have proven to be effective and well-accepted by patients and GPs in countries such as the UK, the USA and New Zealand," said Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association chief executive Alison Verhoeven.

Not only this, they also keep costs and hospital admissions down, she said.

"But, as shown in an issues brief published today by our Deeble Institute for Health Policy Research, the concept has failed to gain a solid foothold here in Australia."

The brief, Integration of general practice pharmacists into primary healthcare settings for chronic disease management, was written by final-year James Cook University medical student Caitlin Shaw.

It says integration of GPPs within primary healthcare services is a model of care that could improve quality use of medications and should be more widely adopted.

Ms Verhoeven said almost one in every two Australians has a chronic medical condition, and 87 per those are over the age of 65.

As these patients become older, their medical needs become more complex and they often require more medication, she said.

This is where general practice pharmacists come in, she said.

"They undertake medication reviews, deliver medical management services and promote medication safety initiatives.

"They can inform GPs about potential medication-related problems and improve health literacy to educate and empower patients to employ effective medication self-management."

There is a demonstrable need for such expertise, Ms Verhoeven said, giving the example of patients with multiple chronic conditions.

For such patients, medication regimes can be unduly confusing, complex and costly, she said.

"Up to 50 per cent of these patients then don't take their medications as required and this has a direct impact on health outcomes.

"Further, medication-related problems cause 20-30 per cent of hospitalisations for people over 65.

"By co-locating pharmacists within general practice they can access the practice's administrative services and patient records and work closely and collaboratively with GPs and other healthcare team professionals using mechanisms such as case conferences."

Ms Verhoeven said there were no health system policy or funding arrangements to support the integrated GPP model of care in Australia.

However, several primary health networks around Australia had either conducted or were conducting pilot programs, with encouraging results, she said.

"Hurdles so far include confusion about the role of GPPs, with doctors as well as patients perceiving pharmacists as solely dispensers of medication while being unaware of their other clinical skills.

"There is also the issue of pharmacist prescribing - permitted in the US, the UK, Canada and New Zealand but not here in Australia, where it has met fierce resistance from doctor organisations in particular.

"There are several ways forward suggested in the Issues Brief, including team care training for pharmacists, research programs, and GP-based data collections to track effectiveness."

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