RECOMMENDATIONS
Recommendation 1
2.19 The committee considers that to the extent
that compliance with privacy laws and obligations can be maintained, Medicare
Australia and DOHA should facilitate the release of information to parties
requesting it to ensure that opportunities to understand the impact of the
program are not wasted.
Recommendation 2
2.28 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth
Government undertake an evaluation to ascertain whether the increased supply of
PBS medicines provided by the program is having a clinical impact on the health
of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in remote communities.
Recommendation 3
2.46 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth
Government provide specific funding for remote area AHSs to be able to provide
dose administration aids (DAAs) to their patients.
Recommendation 4
2.70 The committee agrees with submitters and
recommends that program flexibility be implemented to give remote area AHSs
increased and direct access to the services of a pharmacist. This could be done
by AHSs engaging a pharmacist directly or in collaboration with other
stakeholders or service providers. Options for funding and operating these
services could include cashing-out existing program funding, access to alternative
funding measures, expansion of the Practice Nurse Incentive Program to include
pharmacists, remunerating remote pharmacists for services though the Medicare
Benefits Schedule, and removal of legislative barriers that prevent the
operation of pharmacy businesses in remote areas.
Recommendation 5
2.71 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth
Government establish a consultative body of relevant stakeholders to develop
proposals and options to increase direct access to pharmacists for remote area
AHSs, consult program participants and others, and provide support to AHSs to
allow them to make informed choices about options.
Recommendation 6
3.8 The committee is surprised to note that
there is no universal system in place to provide for accurate and legible
labelling and recording of medicines. The committee therefore recommends that
the Commonwealth Government urgently support the development and introduction
of efficient standardised systems for accurate labelling of medicines in remote
area AHSs, and that these systems are developed to ensure accurate collection
of medicine data and use.
Recommendation 7
4.31 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth
Government publish information on the status of recommendations from previous
reports, making it clear which recommendations will be implemented, timeframes
and responsibility for implementation.
Recommendation 8
4.32 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth
Government ensure that participants in the section 100 program have sufficient
opportunities to participate in the implementation process.
Recommendation 9
5.11 The committee would like to see greater
integration of existing programs to provide complementary services to patients
of AHSs. The evidence the committee received during the course of this inquiry
supports this. Therefore the committee recommends that DOHA develop a process
for integrating existing programs, and that a clear policy and program logic is
published to show how these programs will work together.
Recommendation 10
5.14 The committee recommends that the Commonwealth
Government clarify the application of the section 100 supply program to remote
aged care facilities, and advise operators of these facilities accordingly.
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