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Council News March 2023
Council Message
Welcome to the first edition of the Pharmacy Council of NSW newsletter for 2023.
In this newsletter we have included several articles to support your routine engagement in reflective practice. It is a reminder to us all that it is an essential part of continuing professional development and has been identified as a gap for those practitioners who appear before council.
The Pharmacy Council would like to remind early career pharmacists of the continued importance of preceptors both during and after the completion of internships. Take the opportunity to network with others through professional bodies like the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA), the Pharmacy Guild and the Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia (SPHA) and avail yourselves of their resources. Make time to attend face-to-face meetings with your peers. Ongoing training and interprofessional collaboration are the most effective way of broadening your scope of practice in an everchanging pharmacy environment.
Pharmacy Connect, APP, PSA Education conferences, SHPA conferences and education courses and franchise group national and state gatherings are both social and instructive, with opportunities to interact not only with pharmacists but also with other network partners. Social networking is also a useful tool to share experiences, both positive and negative. As health professionals we should all be lifetime learners.
As outlined in our October newsletter, the Council has been undertaking quarterly forums. These forums bring together key pharmacy stakeholder agencies to discuss issues of relevance to the regulation of the profession. Our most recent forum was hosted by the PSA. We have included a communique and resource below to support proprietor oversight in NSW.
Finally, a reminder that renewals and declarations will be commencing in May. We urge you to closely read the notice below and review the Pharmacy Council website for more information.
Veronica Murdoch
President, Pharmacy Council of NSW
Engaging in reflective practice
Engaging in reflective practice is an integral part of a practitioner’s professional development. Reflective practice supports skill development, decision making, critical thinking, problem solving and is an essential part of continuing professional development (CPD).
Unfortunately, most practitioners who appear before the Council appear to have not engaged in regular reflective practice.
Some of the areas in practice where regular reflection is necessary include:
- Reflecting on your workflow and practices
- Reflecting on areas of risk (e.g., staff training and management, new medications, workflow)
- Reflecting on your own skill set and training needs and ensuring that your CPD and reflective log requirements are relevant, related to your scope of practice and up to date
- Reflection on how you engage with the profession (e.g., through attendance at conferences, networking events, reading through relevant email updates from PRU, Pharmacy Council, PDL)
- Reflecting on how your communication style may influence outcomes (e.g., ensuring regular staff meetings)
- Reflecting on keeping up to date with knowledge of the current legislative requirements and Pharmacy Board of Australia’s codes, guidelines and policies
- Reflecting on the purpose and capabilities of SafeScript and how this tool can assist your practice
Reminder: Annual requirements for pharmacy proprietors and holders of financial interests
If you are a NSW pharmacy owner and/or hold an interest in a NSW pharmacy business on 30 April 2023, you must by 30 June 2023:
- complete a declaration of your financial interest in a pharmacy business and pay the declaration fee ($297 for each pharmacy business); and
- ensure the annual renew of registration of your pharmacy premises is paid.
Message from NSW Ministry of Health
COVID-19 Update
COVID-19 continues to circulate in the NSW community but at relatively low levels following a peak in December 2022. Several indicators are now suggesting COVID-19 cases will increase through March and April. It is important that all health care providers are planning for an increase in COVID-19 case burden and consider ways to best protect our community as we approach the winter months.
Influenza Vaccination Program
NSW Health is curently planning for the 2023 influenza vaccination program. Please click on the button below to read advice related to ordering and distribution of vaccines.
Supporting Resources for Proprietor Oversight
Pharmacy owners must have procedures in place to guide all employees (including employed pharmacists, graduates, locums, dispensary techs, assistants, delivery drivers, contractors) to ensure they clearly understand their obligations per their position description and under the relevant legislation.
Proprietors must maintain, and be able to demonstrate an awareness of, the way that pharmacy business is being conducted. Strategies and interventions are recommended to ensure that the practice of pharmacy is conducted in accordance with relevant laws, standards and guidelines.
Find a range of supporting resources here.
Recent Tribunal decision
HCCC v Chun Wah Wong
Health Care Complaints Commission v Wong [2023] NSWCATOD 10
The Tribunal made the following orders:
- The respondent’s registration is cancelled.
- The respondent may not apply for review of order (1) above for two years from the date of this decision.
- The respondent is to pay the costs of the applicant of the proceedings as agreed or assessed.
Useful links
SafeScript NSW is now available to all prescribers and pharmacists in NSW. If you haven’t already registered, you can do it here.
If you need support to manage patients using monitored medicines, you can call the SafeScript NSW Clinical Advice Line anytime on 1800 434 155 or refer to your local HealthPathways for specific clinical advice for Pharmacists.
Pharmacy Council podcasts
Episode 1: Keeping the public safe - What pharmacists need to know
Episode 2: The dangers of high-risk medications
Webinar: Council representatives were pleased to collaborate with the AJP to present a webinar discussing key areas of complaints to NSW regulators and how to avoid the regulatory pitfalls whether you are a pharmacist, proprietor or manager. We encourage you to view the webinar here.
