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Pharmacists welcome health funding for mental health and the opportunity for community pharmacy to provide access to equitable healthcare.
Pharmacy is well placed to provide better healthcare and services to address the challenges of Mental Health and Addiction in the community. Pharmacy can do this in a much more joined up way providing solutions for the issues presented in the Minister of Health’s Mental Health and Addictions Review – He Ara Oranga. Many patients require medication and these often have significant side effects which make it difficult for people and whanau to manage their medication and general wellbeing on their own.
Pharmacy provides ready access and the opportunity for wrap around services for our mental health populations.
The Society is proposing new expanded services to provide better care for people coming to a pharmacy to collect medication. Pharmacists and General Practice can provide integrated health care for Mental Health and Addiction in the community.
Pharmacists role in the community as the medicines specialist, counselling people about their medication, ensures that medicines are taken safely and people are supported in managing their lifestyle.
The Society applauds the Governments budgetary focus on better provision of health care for our Māori and Pacific communities.
In this article, Sue Frankland looks at the global problem of wastage of medications, including causes such as overprescribing and non-adherence. She also presents information from her master’s dissertation on how people understand, and respond to, medication expiration dates
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