The Dose Administration Aid (DAA) service is a patient-centred, clinical services delivered with the aim of improving medicine safety and the safe and quality use of medicines. It integrates with other patient-centred services to enhance a patient’s optimal use of medicines. Pharmacists can provide this service to any patient based on their clinical need.

A DAA service aims to promote medicine safety and the quality use of medicines by improving adherence and medication management, and reducing medication misadventure. A DAA is a device that can be used as part of a coordinated approach to medication management. By using a DAA, patients can receive the correct medicine, at the correct dose and time, in a safe and hygienic manner.

The delivery of the DAA services encourages pharmacists to work collaboratively with the patient and their carer, prescriber, and other relevant members of the healthcare team to enhance patient care.

Comprehensive medication management reviews aim to identify, resolve and prevent medication-related problems, and optimise medicines use in partnership with medical practitioners and patients. This process occurs in consultation with the patient, and in collaboration with a medical practitioner and other healthcare providers, with the aim of optimising each patient’s medication experience and clinical outcomes.

A comprehensive medication management review includes an individualised medication management plan that details the intended goals of therapy. Appropriate follow-up occurs to determine actual patient outcomes.

Comprehensive medication management reviews must be conducted by a pharmacist with the appropriate skills and expertise, acting in partnership with patients as part of a multidisciplinary team. These guidelines apply to comprehensive medication management reviews regardless of practice setting and funding mechanisms.

Telehealth medication reviews

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth services may temporarily be offered where a patient meets the eligibility criteria. The Department of Health has partnered with PSA in developing resources for pharmacists conducting medication reviews via telehealth. These resources are designed to support pharmacists conducting service via telehealth, and to assist patients receiving these service.

For full patient eligibility criteria, refer to the Home Medicines Review and Residential Medication Management Review program rules which can be found on the Pharmacy Programs Administrator website www.ppaonline.com.au.

Access the resources below:

Quality Use of Medicines (QUM) services are a key strategy to optimise medication management within residential aged care facilities (RACFs). They improve medicine safety by supporting RACFs’ to safely manage medicines, and improve medicine management practices and procedures. QUM services revolve around three groups of activities:

• education and training;
• clinical governance; and
• resident-level activities.

These should be implemented following the development of a QUM plan, which integrates these activities into a cohesive quality improvement process.

These guidelines are designed to promote a consistently high quality of service, and provide guidance to pharmacists on professional issues relating to the various activities undertaken within the scope of QUM services.

Fact sheet for RMMRs and QUM services

The staged supply service is a patient-centred, clinical services delivered with the aim of improving medicine safety and the safe and quality use of medicines. It integrates with other patient-centred services to enhance a patient’s optimal use of medicines. Pharmacists can provide this service to any patient based on their clinical need.

Staged supply is a clinically-indicated, structured pharmacist service involving the supply of medicine to a patient in periodic instalments as requested by the prescriber or carer. These instalments are less than the originally prescribed quantity at agreed intervals (e.g. daily or weekly), with the balance of the prescribed quantity is held by the pharmacy to fulfil subsequent instalments.

The delivery of the staged supply service encourages pharmacists to work collaboratively with the patient and their carer, prescriber, and other relevant members of the healthcare team to enhance patient care.

Continued Dispensing is the supply of an eligible medicine to a patient under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme when there is an immediate need for that medicine but it is not practicable to obtain a prescription, provided:

• the medicine has been previously prescribed, therapy is stable and there has been prior clinical review by the prescriber that supports continuation of the medicine; and
• the medicine is safe and appropriate for the patient.

The Guidelines for Continued Dispensing of Eligible Prescribed Medicines by Pharmacists are intended to provide advice and guidance to assist pharmacists to meet their professional responsibilities, exercise professional judgement in individual circumstances and manage risks associated with the Continued Dispensing of eligible prescribed medicines.

An addendum to the Continued Dispensing guidelines was updated and published most recently on 1 July 2020 with expanded arrangements to support people affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic. The addendum can be accessed here.

PSA has a couple of member-only support tools to assist pharmacists with the Continued Dispensing supply arrangements, including:

• Continued Dispensing – Scenarios for pharmacists
• Continued Dispensing – Template for recording a medicine request.

Guidelines

Addendum

In Australia, pharmacists have been administering vaccinations since 2014. It is now widely accepted as being within scope of practice for appropriately trained pharmacists across all states and territories.

The Practice Guidelines for the Provision of Immunisation Services provide information and guidance to pharmacists on professional issues and obligations relating to pharmacist immunisation services. These guidelines may also be a useful resource for other stakeholders, including service providers or immunisers contracted or employed to administer vaccinations as part of a pharmacy immunisation service.

PSA recognises the importance of continuity of care within the healthcare environment. These guidelines promote specific policies and protocols designed to ensure safe and effective service delivery and communication between healthcare providers.

The Guidelines for pharmacists administering medicines by injection provide information and guidance to pharmacists on professional issues and obligations relating to pharmacists administering medicines by injection.

If you are a pharmacist immuniser, you can build your confidence and competence in administering medicines by injection, by completing PSA Administering medicines by injection course.

PSA recognises the importance of continuity of care within the healthcare environment. These guidelines promote specific policies and protocols designed to ensure safe and effective service delivery and communication between healthcare providers.

PSA is committed to promoting quality use of medicines (QUM) in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. PSA recognises the need to improve the awareness and understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and cultural issues amongst pharmacists and pharmacy staff. PSA encourages pharmacists to develop relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities in their local area to optimise health benefits to community members.

The Guide to Providing Pharmacy Services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is designed to assist pharmacists to deliver a consistently high quality of service to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, to communicate effectively and to be culturally responsive health professionals. The guide encourages increased engagement with Aboriginal health services (AHSs), key Aboriginal organisations and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

The Digital Health Guidelines for Pharmacists describe the professional obligations of pharmacists when interacting with digital health systems in performing their professional clinical roles.

These guidelines provide guidance on expected professional practice when using digital health systems so that pharmacists can provide optimal patient outcomes while meeting legal and ethical obligations relating to data access and stewardship.

The guidelines should be used as a tool to support practice and professional decision making, and ensure that patients’ needs, beliefs and preferences are met. They can be used as an educational resource to inform quality assurance processes and provide support when resolving legal disputes and ethical dilemmas.

Dispensing is a fundamental component of pharmacy practice, facilitating the safe provision of prescription medicines.

The Dispensing Practice Guidelines provide information and guidance to assist pharmacists to meet their professional responsibilities, exercise professional judgement and manage risks associated with dispensing. They provide information and advice to pharmacists on professional issues related to dispensing. The guidelines highlight contemporary considerations for pharmacists from the point of receiving a prescription, including:

• reviewing prescribed medicines effectively using the breadth of information sources available
• recording and documenting information to support decision making, taking into account the need to protect patient information
• selecting or accurately preparing the medicine
• labelling
• counselling.

Clinical governance is a concept which has been recognised as a way of achieving and improving safety, quality and effectiveness in the provision of health care. While all pharmacy services contain a degree of quality management and governance, the formal application of clinical governance to services led by pharmacists is highly varied.

Clinical Governance Principles for Pharmacy Services considers clinical governance concepts to provide pharmacists and organisations involved in the provision of pharmacy services with guiding principles for the design, implementation and ongoing evaluation of pharmacy services.

The principles can ideally be used by service designers, organisations, and individual pharmacists to help plan new pharmacy services, or reflect on opportunities to enhance aspects of clinical governance to improve the quality of patient care for existing pharmacy services.

Pharmacy trials that were established and funded under the 6^th Community Pharmacy Agrement and that are intended to continue beyond the term of that agreement will continue until the current trial end date.

Health Care Homes is a collaborative model of care for patients with complex and chronic needs to improve their disease-state control. The patient is managed at a home base, known as a Health Care Home, allowing the delivery of coordinated, team-based care around the needs and goals of the patient. Health Care Homes are existing general practices or Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services. The model uses a Shared Care Plan to communicate the patient’s mutually agreed health information with the patient and all members of their healthcare team.

The Guidelines for Pharmacists Participating in the Health Care Homes Trial guidelines provide pharmacists with best-practice guidance for the delivery of the Community Pharmacy in Health Care Homes Trial Program (the Trial Program).

Certificate for absence from work is a form of evidence used to confirm that an employee is unable to attend work either due to illness, injury, or having to care for family or a household member. Other forms of evidence are medical certificates and statutory declarations. It is deemed within a registered pharmacist’s scope of practice to issue a certificate for absence from work, provided they are acting within their competency and professional expertise as a pharmacist.

The Absence from Work Certificate: Guidelines for Pharmacists provide pharmacists with best practice guidance on issuing certificates for absence from work. This Guidance has been developed to meet the Fair Work Act 2009 requirements on evidence to support the need for an employee to be absent form the workplace. The Guidelines do not replace the need for pharmacists to exercise professional discretion and judgement when issuing a certificate for absence from work.

The PSA recognises the importance of continuity of care within the healthcare environment. The Practice Guidelines for the Provision of Sleep Apnoea Services Within Pharmacy provide assistance to pharmacist on professional issues and obligations relating to pharmacy sleep apnoea services and aim to promote standardisation of this professional service within pharmacies in Australia.

They also promote policies and protocols designed to ensure effective channels of communication and collaboration between healthcare providers to ensure best possible outcomes for the patient.

The PSA, developed these practice guidelines in conjunction with the Australasian Sleep Association. This work is the result of extensive consultation and collaboration between the two organisations over some time.