Future for pharmacists

[Pharmanaut]

Pharmacy practice is becoming increasingly localised, the way they do things in the US,Canada, Australia or Europe is no longer necessarily the way things are going to be done in the UK.

Increased localisation of services, particularly the rules that govern those services will mean that none of the pharmacy system suppliers will be willing to develop software that will vary with each PCT. The PCTs need to engage with the PSNC and develop standards for services that are national - then we can get the software support to do the job efficiently. Lets tell them to get in there and get on with it.

[student]

about when do you think these changes are going to go ahead

[paul2008]

about when do you think these changes are going to go ahead

Old Merlin is right changes rarely happen just like that things evolve slowly. Even now there are pharmacists whose work is entirely with patients and does not involve compounding of dispensing at all, instead they work as advisers or prescribers.

No planned top down change really can be successful, the profession really needs to drive the change so that means the timetable depends on people changing. What may change in the next few years is the legislative monopoly that pharmacists have. Doctors have already lost their prescribing monopoly. Remember the professions are there to service society and society (ie elected representatives) can make and should make rules that are best for society and not for pharmacists or students or even MP's. Either pharmacists are going to change or eventually they will become obsolete, its the same with everything.

You need to know that whatever you chose to do is actually useful and valuable to people so that even if you don't have a legislative monopoly people to bring their custom to you.

regards,

paul
------
2008 - the year for change! Change available any time now.

[askapharmacist]

Unfortunately in Australia there has been a large shift in public perception to value price above anything else when it comes to dealing with pharmacies and pharmacists. While I agree this is an important issue to all of us including the public, getting the most for our dollar/pound, I am disappointed while our medication professions have kept a veil over their charging and have not gone down the road of severe price competition, Australia's community pharmacy industry has shot itself in the foot by having all out price wars between pharmacy groups. The result? Well, now everybody's profit margins have fell and the public are seeing us less as a professional place of practice, but a great place to get $2 washing powder.

We need to shift, or at least focus, onto the professional aspects of pharmacy practice, and maintain some dignity in price wars.

Regards,
AustralianPharma
Ask a Pharmacist