GPs
A closer look at the referral secret shopper survey
A mystery shopper paper which criticised pharmacy referral behaviours needs to be seen in its true perspective, says the College The Australian College of Pharmacy says that the secret shopper …
What’s up, doc?
Aussie GPs are prescribing between four and nine times as many antibiotics as they should be, according to MJA research Research led by Christopher Del Mar, Professor of Public Health at Bond …
The week in review
Pharmacists could be forgiven for having an identity crisis this week, after a slew of analogies were used to criticise the sector First, pharmacists’ scope of practice was compared to …
Why the backflip?
Jarrod McMaugh shares his concerns about Sonic’s withdrawal from Sigma’s in-pharmacy pathology screening program The news is extremely disappointing, and I feel it amounts to suppression of competition within the …
Doctors cheer as Amcal pathology scrapped
The AMA has cheered the decision by Sonic Healthcare to withdraw from pharmacy-based screening programs The “Super Sonic decision” is in the best interest of patients, AMA president Dr Michael …
From knitting to lawnmowers: more GPs slam Amcal pathology
Pharmacy pathology screening has been likened to “getting your car serviced at the lawn mower shop” by a leading GP Dr Edwin Kruys, Acting President of the Royal Australian College …
Pharmacists should ‘stick to their knitting’
AMA president Dr Michael Gannon has drawn ire for telling pharmacists to “stick to their knitting” over pathology tests After Sigma announced that it would offer pathology health screenings throughout …
Doctors castigated for overprescribing antibiotics
The Chief Medical Officer has sent out more than 5000 letters to GPs with the highest prescribing rates Australia’s highest antibiotic-prescribing GPs have been targeted with a letter from Chief …
Pharmacy screening ‘opportunistic, wasteful’
The Australian Medical Association has slammed pharmacy pathology testing, calling it “bordering on irresponsible” On Monday 26 June, Sigma’s Amcal Pharmacy network rolled out a pathology testing initiative, under a …
Amcal pathology screening gets thumbs up
The Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia has backed the pathology health screenings rolled out through Sigma’s Amcal Pharmacy network this week Sigma Healthcare has partnered with SmartHealth to roll-out …
Woman overdoses on drugs prescribed by boyfriend
A woman died after taking a cocktail of drugs prescribed by her doctor boyfriend Coroner Simon Cooper found that Pamela Diane McCall died in February 2013 from an overdose of …
Doctors’ dud beliefs
Doctors’ own biases could keep them suggesting tests and treatments that aren’t worth it The impact of campaigns to reduce low value care in medicine, such as Choosing Wisely Australia …