PD for Thu 21 Apr 2022 - WA expands pharmacy vax, antibiotic scripts decline, national opioid

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Today’s issue of PD Pharmacy Daily today features three pages of news plus a cover page from TerryWhite Chemmart.

TWC training Terrywhite Chemmart (TWC) is highlighting the ongoing pharmacist and staff training program it offers to franchisees, with year-round elements which cover a pharmacist’s entire year of CPD points.

Comprising both face-toface and online options, the scheme aims to support career progression for all roles within each TWC pharmacy.

The offering also includes plenty of networking opportunities including the annual TCW national conference and state-based regional events to provide key business updates.

See the cover page for more.

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WA expands pharmacy immunisation The Western Australian Government this morning announced a major expansion of its Community Pharmacy Immunisation Program.

The move, confirmed by WA Health Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson, will see the scope of National Immunisation Program (NIP) vaccinations administered through community pharmacies to include influenza vaccinations for people aged five years and over who are eligible for the NIP, including Aboriginal people, those with medical conditions increasing their risk of influenza, pregnant women and those aged 65-plus.

WA community pharmacies will also be able to administer adolescent vaccinations, including Human papillomavirus (HPV), Diptheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis (dTpa) and Meningococcal ACWY immunisations.

The scope includes influenza vaccinations for primary schoolaged children, and measlesmumps-rubella (MMR) vaccinations

for people born after 1965 who have had less than two doses.

The announcement only covers the supply of the vaccines, with community pharmacies expected to have to cover their costs by passing on a small administration fee to their patients.

The Pharmacy Guild is urging the Commonwealth Government to cover these costs, as it does for general practitioner vaccinations.

Guild WA President, Andrew Ngeow, hailed the announcement of the expansion of pharmacist vaccination scope, saying “every patient aged five years and over can now receive their influenza or COVID-19 vaccination at their local community pharmacy”.

However he urged the Government to deliver equity by helping to fund the service.

“Whilst many patients have been willing to pay a small vaccine administration fee for the convenience and accessibility of a pharmacy administered vaccine, it doesn’t mean that they should do

so forever,” Ngeow said.

There are currently over 500 community pharmacies authorised to provide one or more vaccines within Western Australia, many in rural and regional areas.

It is anticipated that community pharmacies will be able to provide the expanded services outside their premises, as is currently authorised for other vaccinations.

Ngeow thanked Sanderson and the WA Government for their commitment to community pharmacy, saying the Guild “looks forward to further exploring primary health opportunities for the sector into the future”.

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Antibiotic scripts decline during COVID There has been a hefty 38% decline in Australian prescriptions for antibiotics during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new research being presented next week in Lisbon at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases.

Produced by scientists at Monash University and published in the Clinical Infectious Diseases journal, the study’s author Jack Skeggs noted that the significant decline could have major implications for antimicrobial stewardship.

He noted that the results were in line with other global studies which had shown reductions in outpatient antibiotic prescribing during the pandemic, with drivers of the decline perhaps attributed to patients avoiding or being unable to see their GPs, or measures such as lockdowns or mask wearing and cultural shifts in hygiene.

Monash Health examined rates of antibiotic prescribing in Australia before and during the pandemic.

Over a seven year period from 2014 there was a clear seasonal variation in prescribing, with a 29% higher rate of antibiotic scripts during the winter months.

However this seasonal variation disappeared during the pandemic, with the number of scripts dropping sharply as national restrictions were implemented in Mar 2020, and remained lower than usual during the entire period under investigation.

Reductions were mainly in antibiotics used to treat community

acquired respiratory infections such as pneumonia and bronchitis, with Skeggs saying this was likely due to social distancing measures introduced to curb COVID-19.

However amoxicillin script numbers also declined, despite the medication not recommended for respiratory infections, with the report concluding that this “suggests it is normally being prescribed in the community for inappropriate indications”.

Reductions in antibiotic prescribing occurred in all states and territories, despite major differences in COVID-19 case numbers and lockdown durations.

For example in SA there were no lockdowns during the study period, compared to Vic where stay at home orders were in place for 208 days in 2020 - but both jurisdictions saw comparable reductions in antibiotic prescribing.

Decreases were seen even though GPs carried out the same number of consultations as usual.

Vitafoods return Thousands of nutraceutical professionals are expected to take part in next month’s Vitafoods Europe expo, which combines an online platform with an inperson event in Geneva.

Several Australian speakers are taking part, including Blackmores Institute’s Lesley Braun and Gillian Fish, CEO of wellbeing PR firm 6AM agency.

Visitors are able to access the online platform a week before the live event to plan their visit and access content.

The gathering will explore key market trends, regulatory complexities, packaging and labelling challenges, along with an “enhanced focus on pressing industry issues such as mental wellbeing, women in nutraceuticals and sustainability,” the organisers said, with free registration now live at vitafoods.eu.com.

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Thu 21st April 2022

Keneally’s Cabramatta jab

FORMER Senator Kristina Keneally, who is running for the Western Sydney seat of Fowler in the upcoming Federal election, took the opportunity to have a flu immunisation at Priceline Pharmacy Cabramatta while pressing the flesh earlier this week.

Keneally was vaccinated by pharmacist Quinn On, who took the opportunity to point out that the

more people who are vaccinated in each community, the less likelihood that disease will spread.

“Last year flu numbers were down, largely because of lockdowns and isolation,” he said.

“This year is going to be a lot different and we anticipate it will be a very tough flu season”.

Keneally is pictured with Helen On and Quinn On.

National opioid standard launch The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care will next week formally release the new Opioid Analgesic Stewardship in Acute Pain Clinical Care Standard.

The new standard outlines the appropriate use of opioid analgesics for acute pain in the emergency department and following surgery, excluding major trauma.

An online webcast event and panel discussion will take place on Wed 27 Apr from 12-1pm AEST, with participants invited

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to learn about the best practice use of opioid analgesics to manage acute pain, including safe and appropriate prescribing, monitoring adverse events, medication management, supporting stewardship and reducing patient harm.

Registrations are now open to attend, with healthcare professionals working in emergency, surgery, pain management, nursing, allied health or clinical pharmacy services encouraged to attend.

CLICK HERE to sign up for free.

EDITORIAL Editor in Chief and Publisher – Bruce Piper Editor – Nicholas O’Donoghue Contributors – Adam Bishop, Myles Stedman info@pharmacydaily.com.au

FDA slams NIPT Some non-invasive prenatal tests (NIPT) used to screen for genetic abormalities in unborn children may generate false results, and should not be used for diagnostic purposes according to a new warning from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The FDA noted that the tests are categorised as “laboratorydeveloped tests” and are not subject to pre-market review.

The agency said while the tests were advertised as “reliable” and “accurate,” these claims “may not be supported with sound scientific evidence”.

NZ ECP support The Pharmaceutical Society of New Zealand (PSNZ) has launched a new Early Career Pharmacists (ECP) Support Course for members who have been in the profession for less than a decade.

The organisation said the resources available would enhance the career of ECPs, but “also support them as they begin this journey of a registered pharmacist”.

“It is evident that the ECPs want to be supported in knowledge and tangible ways to progress their career, in particular in the first few years of being a pharmacist.

“The proposed resources have been identified as areas that would support ECPs and are needed to be able to advance their profession, develop new skills, gain confidence in leadership and connect with their community and peers,” the PSNZ said.

More at psnz.org.au.

Advertising and Marketing Sean Harrigan, Hoda Alzubaidi advertising@pharmacydaily.com.au Business manager Jenny Piper accounts@pharmacydaily.com.au

Dispensary Corner Having too much salt in your diet isn’t good for hypertensionbut what if you just can’t resist that salty taste?

No problem, according to researchers in Japan who have developed new “computerised chopsticks” which can enhance the flavour of food without actually adding seasoning.

Professor Homei Miyashita from Meiji University collaborated with beverage maker Kirin Holdings on the project, with the gadget using a weak electrical current to transmit sodium ions from the food,through the chopsticks, to the mouth where they create a “sense of saltiness”.

Miyashita estimated a 50% increase in the salty taste when using the device, which links the chopsticks with a wrist-worn microcomputer (pictured).

He said it was a better alternative for cutting salt in one’s diet compared to “enduring eating bland food”.

Currently at the prototype level, Kirin hopes to commercialise the electronic implements sometime in 2023.

Professor Miyashita previously came to prominence when his laboratory developed a lickable TV screen which can imitate various food flavours, according to a Reuters report.

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Pharmacy Daily is a publication of Pharmacy Daily Pty Ltd ABN 97 124 094 604. All content fully protected by copyright. Please obtain written permission to reproduce any material. While every care has been taken in the preparation of the newsletter no liability can be accepted for errors or omissions. Information is published in good faith to stimulate independent investigation of the matters canvassed. Responsibility for editorial comment is taken by Bruce Piper.

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