The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia says it has welcomed the federal Government’s commitment to provide funding of $345.7 million to improve medicine safety for older Australians by embedding pharmacists in residential aged care facilities.
Minister for Health and Ageing, Greg Hunt, announced that from 1 January 2023, pharmacists will play an even greater role in dispensing medicines within Australia’s residential aged care facilities.
PSA National President, Associate Professor Chris Freeman said: “Today’s announcement from Minister Hunt has been long-awaited. This is a win for those residents who will now have greater access to medicines experts, our pharmacists, and I have no doubt that this sentiment will be shared by the aged care sector.”
He said the PSA had advocated for funding to improve medicine safety in residential aged care facilities since 2018, following the establishment of the Royal Commission into Aged Care.
“The Royal Commission into Aged Care detailed well-known issues like the overuse of psychotropic medicines, and since then, troubling data on medication misadventure has continued to emerge,” he said.