In Brief
GP goes to top over ban on 24-hour co-located pharmacy
In Brief
Staff writers
ANTONY SCHOLEFIELD A GP is appealing to the Minister for Health to allow him to open a medical clinic with a 24-hour pharmacy after being foiled by the Byzantine rules protecting pharmacies from competition .
Dr Alan Cunneen is battling to transform his practice in Melbourne into an around-the-clock GP clinic in conjunction with a small pharmacy to dispense medications after hours .
He claimed that authorities initially approved the plan and were satisfied his plan met the notoriously strict pharmacy location rules .
The rules allow new pharmacies that are within 500m of existing pharmacies provided they are in a shopping centre .
Given Dr Cunneen ’ s clinic is next door to the Pinewood Shopping Village , he assumed he was safe .
But a pharmacist based in the shopping centre took him to the Federal Court of Australia , arguing that the shopping village — with more than 60 shops and 500 car parks — was not technically a shopping centre because it was not operating under a single central management structure .
“ The pharmacist went to appeal on a tiny technical issue , it went to the Federal Court and we lost ,” said Dr Cunneen .
“ I ’ ve been five years building this GP clinic . I just wanted to provide a good service .”
He said he understood the point of the location rules to ensure pharmacies were spread evenly , but claimed his new pharmacy would not have competed directly with those nearby .
“ We ’ re 80 metres square , no vitamins , no perfumes , hidden in the medical centre . And if we were allowed to open , we would be a lot cheaper for patients than the National Home Doctor Service .
“ It ’ d take the pressure off hospitals , ambulances and Medicare .”
Dr Cunneen has now started petitioning Mr Hunt to use his discretionary powers and overturn the ban .
“ The law is the law , but it should follow common sense ,” said Dr Cunneen .
Australian Doctor has attempted to contact the pharmacist who lodged the Federal Court appeal .
Push to dispense script-free S4 medications
ANTONY SCHOLEFIELD PHARMACY owners have written to the TGA calling for the right to dispense a range of S4 drugs — including some antibiotics — without a doctor ’ s script .
Doctors have already slammed the Pharmacy Guild of Australia for its bid to keep codeine over-thecounter in some circumstances , even after it is upscheduled to an S4 medication in February 2018 .
But it has now emerged the guild has written to the TGA saying other prescription drugs should be available OTC too .
The new model , which should be given “ serious consideration ” according to the guild , is meant to help patients when they cannot access a GP .
The guild ’ s suggested examples of potential ‘ prescription except when ’ are :
• sildenafil ( in doses of 12 tablets of 100mg or less );
• calcipotriol ( for diagnosed mild
to moderate psoriasis , in packs of less than 30g where each dose contains less than 50mg / gram );
• trimethoprim ( for uncomplicated UTIs in packs of three containing 300mg or less each ); and
• azithromycin ( only for confirmed cases of chlamydia when pharmacists are registered to provide chlamydia tests ). The suggestions are based on scheduling used in the UK and New Zealand .
RACGP vice-president Dr Edwin Kruys called it a “ most unhelpful submission ”, highlighting the examples of trimethoprim and azithromycin . “ We need careful
‘ We ’ re 80 metres square , no vitamins , no perfumes , hidden in the medical centre . And if we were allowed to open , we would be a lot cheaper for patients than the National Home Doctor Service .’
— Dr Alan Cunneen
stewardship of antibiotics and this has the potential to make the current situation worse ,” he said .
“ This submission looks like an attempt to push the envelope at a time when the pharmacy industry is under considerable pressure to help end over-the-counter sales of codeine based medications .”
RACGP vicepresident Dr Edwin Kruys calls it a ‘ most unhelpful submission ’.
Don ’ t hit GPs with red tape after Medicare hack : AMA
THE Federal Government has been warned not to hit practices with more red tape when it responds to revelations that Medicare numbers are being sold on the dark web . In July , it emerged that dozens of Medicare numbers had been sold for about $ 25 each . A review is looking at the Medicare number lookup system , used by doctors , as a potential culprit . But in its submission to the review , the AMA said the response should be proportionate to the problem , as doctors used the system 10 million times a year for legitimate reasons . “ The solution to these does not lie in burdening medical practices with extra red tape ,” it said .
Victims of drug-testing will be referred to specialists
WELFARE recipients who test positive twice in the Federal Government ’ s planned welfare drug-testing regime will be referred for treatment to addiction specialists rather than GPs it has emerged . A report by the Community Affairs Legislation Committee , released last week , said the trial should go ahead . However , doctor groups have panned the regime calling it a waste of money with no evidencebase .
No evidence linking cardiac death with elite sports
A LEADING sports cardiologist says there is no conclusive evidence well-trained athletes like ironman champion Dean Mercer are more likely to suffer sudden cardiac death . Associate Professor Andre La Gerche , head of Sports Cardiology at Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute , spoke out following media reports that linked the death of Mr Mercer at age 47 with his elite training regimen .
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