Pain trial ‘a great move forward’
The $20 million Pain MedsCheck trial is about ensuring pharmacy is at the frontline of primary care, says Greg Hunt Last week, the Health Minister announced a Pain MedsCheck trial, …
The week in review
Pain was on the agenda this week, as the disagreements about codeine continue On Thursday, Health Minister Greg Hunt announced a $20 million initiative, run through community pharmacies, to help …
‘An open invitation to health fraud.’
A proposed Therapeutic Goods bill would give unproven medicines a “free kick” and undermine pharmacy professionalism, one critic says Friends of Science in Medicine and other stakeholders are concerned that …
Media reports could have pushed stockpiling
More than a fifth of codeine users are currently stockpiling the drug, new research suggests myDNA conducted research to find out how many Australians are using over-the-counter codeine-containing analgesics, ahead …
Counsel methadone patients on drug driving, pharmacists urged
The omission of methadone from drug driving laws has been questioned by Drug-Safe Communities following its implication in a fatal Boxing Day crash On December 26, a 50-year-old man who …
MedsCheck for pain to be trialed
Health Minister Greg Hunt has announced a $20 million trial program to help people suffering chronic pain, to be run through community pharmacies The Guild and PSA have welcomed the …
World news wrapup: 25 January 2018
NZ body slams codeine upschedule; UK pharmacists helped to spot radicalisation; Chicago plagued by ‘pharmacy deserts’ Lincolnshire, UK: A pharmacy in Sleaford is the first in the UK to provide …
PBS faces decade of negative real growth
The Guild’s prediction that the $18.9 billion figure in the 6CPA would not be delivered has come true, executive director David Quilty says Writing in this week’s edition of Forefront, …
Codeine claims and counter-claims
Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy and the University of Sydney’s Peter Carroll have gone head-to-head on Radio National debating codeine efficacy and implication in overdose The two spoke to the …
Post-surgery opioids and misuse
A new study has shown that each refill and week of opioid prescription is associated with a large increase in opioid misuse The study, published in the BMJ, aimed to …
OTC codeine death claims ‘must stop’
Pharmacy Guild NSW Branch president David Heffernan has hit out at recent claims about deaths associated with OTC codeine, saying they defame pharmacists In a message to NSW Guild members, …
Pregnancy focus needed for ADHD meds
The incidence of women of reproductive age filling scripts for ADHD medicines has soared, up to 700% in one age group The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have …