The pharmacy prescribing pilot in Queensland shows that, love or loathe it, lobbying gets results.
Last Friday the AMA, RACGP and ACRRM resigned en masse from the Queensland pharmacy-prescribing trial steering committee.
According to these peak bodies, they had each chosen to put a member on the steering group to keep an eye on the Pharmacy Guild and Queensland Health. They just forgot to tell their members about the decision.
But amid the outrage around the trial itself and the GP groups’ response, there’s a grudging admiration of what the Pharmacy Guild can make happen – at least in Queensland.
This episode of The Tea Room we talk about the scope of pharmacists, lobbying power, and whether GPs should be able to unionise. Our guest is Dr Umair Masood, GP and vice-president of the Australian Society for General Practice.
UPDATE: Since this podcast was recorded, ASGP has withdrawn its bid to be a registered organisation, but intends to reapply.
You can listen and subscribe to the show by searching for “The Tea Room Medical Republic” in your favourite podcast player.
