The Pharmacy Council of NSW is seeking feedback on the draft Pharmacy Council of New South Wales premises and equipment guidance for non-sterile complex compounding.
The guidance has been developed by the Council as a resource for pharmacists involved in non-sterile complex compounding activities. It is intended to provide premises and equipment guidance for New South Wales pharmacies where non-sterile complex compounding activities are conducted.
You are invited to provide feedback on the draft guidance to mail@pharmacycouncil.nsw.gov.au by close of business Friday, 12 April 2019.
Submissions
The Council is seeking general feedback on the draft guidance, as well as in response to the following questions:
1. Is the structure, language and tone of the draft guidance easy to follow and appropriate?
2. Is the purpose and scope of the draft guidance clear?
3. Do you have any specific comments on the content of the draft guidance? If so, please outline.
4. Do you have any other comments to make about the draft guidance? If so, please outline.
Role of the Council
The Council’s primary objective is to protect the health and safety of the public and to ensure that high professional standards are maintained. In accordance with the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (NSW) and the Health Practitioner Regulation (New South Wales) Regulation 2016, the Council manages complaints about the performance, conduct and health of registered pharmacists and pharmacy students in NSW. The Council also regulates pharmacy ownership and pharmacy premises, which includes the maintenance of a register of NSW pharmacies.
Background
In recent years, the Council has dealt with an increasing number of complaints relating to compounded preparations. As a growing area of concern, the Council is working to provide practical guidance to New South Wales pharmacists to support improved pharmacy practices in compounding. This work is designed to complement existing legislation and publications such as the Pharmacy Board of Australia’s Guidelines on compounding of medicines and the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia’s Australian Pharmaceutical Formulary and Handbook. The Council also acknowledges existing guidelines published by the Victorian Pharmacy Authority with respect to compounding.
Pharmacists are reminded that compounded preparations should only be prepared in certain circumstances. The Pharmacy Board of Australia’s Guidelines on compounding of medicines states that “the compounding of a medicine (whether prescribed or not) that would be a close formulation to an available and suitable commercial product, and would not be likely to produce a different therapeutic outcome to the commercial product, should not take place.”
Next steps
Submissions received during this public consultation process will be used to inform the Council’s refinement of the draft guidance prior to publication.
Contact
For questions about the consultation, please contact Katharina Nicholson via (02) 9219 0220 or mail@pharmacycouncil.nsw.gov.au.