News
Ozempic shortages behind diabetes patients’ funeral fundraiser
Ongoing global shortages of diabetes medication, Ozempic (semaglutide), due to off-label prescribing has prompted one patient to start a GoFundMe campaign for his funeral. Diabetes patient, Stephen Callaghan, is …
The week in review
The debate about scope of practice continued this week, plus decisions on Covid boosters and several medications Scope of practice is still top of mind, with Pharmacy Guild of Australia …
Box cutter robbery a ‘cry for help’
Crime roundup: A man has been sentenced over his robbery of a Chemist Warehouse with a box cutter, while another’s spelling error tipped pharmacists off to his fake script Newcastle, …
The top ten
Industrial disputes and disruptors capture pharmacists interests in recent weeks Industrial relations, new patient offerings and regulatory issues topped our readers interest list over recent weeks. These were the ten …
Concerns raised over “unpaid” student placements
Clinical placements are putting students in some healthcare programs under financial pressure an academic believes. Charles Darwin University Head of Social Work, Associate Professor Lisa Hodge, told a field education …
PBS designed for a bygone era
Medicare reform must not come at the expense of improving other areas of Australia’s health system, including the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), Trent Zimmerman, warns. Writing in The Guardian former …
Put safety ahead of convenience
Patients are being urged to eschew the convenience of online prescribing services in favour of a “proper consult”. Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Victorian Chair, Dr Anita …
Yes, masks reduce the risk of spreading Covid, despite a review saying they don’t
Do face masks really work to reduce Covid transmission? C Raina MacIntyre and Abrar Ahmad Chughtai, UNSW Sydney; David Fisman, University of Toronto, and Trish Greenhalgh, University of Oxford take …
Vast amounts of drugs prescribed ‘incompatible with life’
The dispensing of a lot of fake scripts could have been avoided, if one doctor had acted on a pharmacist’s concerns A Tribunal has heard how a patient walked off …
Vale Alistair Lloyd
PSA mourns the passing of a leading pharmacy educator The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Dr Alistair Lloyd AO FRD ED …
Case highlights issue of when to retire
A doctor’s practice has been called “lazy” and “sloppy” after he treated himself and a close family member for a decade The Medical Board of Australia has issued a statement …
Vale Frank Ahern
Profession mourns the passing of a leading inspector and pharmacist Frank Raymond Ahern died on 15 December 2022 at the age of 93 years. Frank’s career in pharmacy began as …