KERANG has been chosen as one of the four pilot sites for the new Pharmacist Chronic Disease Management pilot.
Member for Northern Victoria, Mark Gepp has announced that Terry White Chemist and Gannawarra Family Clinic will work closely together to help patients manage their chronic illnesses and medication.
Due to strong interest in participating in the pilot from GPs and pharmacies, four sites have been selected, an increase from the previously announced three sites.
The selected pilot sites are located in areas that have been identified as having an increased prevalence of chronic disease and would most benefit from the pilot program.
The other pilot sites are at Whittlesea, Kilmore and Alexandra.
Chronic diseases place a significant burden on Victorian communities with more than half of all visits to GPs currently involving the management of at least one chronic condition.
Many of these visits involve routine tasks, such as making dose adjustments, rather than diagnosing new conditions.
The Minister for Health, Jill Hennessy said that improved collaboration between pharmacists and GPs, families will have a new convenient option to access the health-care they need, when they need it and close to home.
“More than half of patients at a GP are there because of a chronic condition,” she said.
“We want patients to be able to look to their trusted and skilled pharmacists for routine queries, so we can take the pressure off doctors and medical clinics.
Gannawarra Family Clinic principal, Dr Nii Darko said that he believed the 18-month trial would show an improvement on the current patient review process, particularly for patients requiring five or more medications per day.
Accredited pharmacist, Simon O’Halloran said that patient visits to the pharmacy between doctor’s appointments would enable the results of counselling and assessments such as blood-pressure checks, to be documented and shared with the doctor.
The weekend availability of pharmacists is also expected to enhance the patient’s well-being.
Member for Northern Victoria, Mark Gepp said that more than 87 per cent of Victorians live within 2.5 kilometres of a pharmacy.
“It means this pilot has the capacity to make things much easier for those managing a chronic condition,” he said.
