A Dubbo pharmacist is urging people using medicines such as Panadeine, Mersyndol and Nurofen Plus to “make an appointment with their doctor”.
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Medicines containing codeine will be unattainable in Dubbo and Australian pharmacies without a prescription from February 1.
Delroy Chemmart Pharmacy’s Kaail Bohm is highlighting the imminent implementation of the decision announced by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) in late 2016 to make codeine-based products prescription-only. The TGA is seeking to address inappropriate use of the medicines.
Mr Bohm said pain relief was a big part of what a pharmacist did on a day-to-day basis. “That will go to doctors now,” he said. “They’re going to be busy.” A Pharmacy Guild of Australia survey has revealed 72 per cent of consumers are “most likely go to the doctor for a prescription to obtain the medicines”.
“This change in consumer behaviour will no doubt lead to an increase in the workload of GPs and increased waiting times for patients, especially as many medical practices have limited capacity to accept new patients,” president of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia George Tambassis said. “Patients who reside in regional, rural and remote areas would be most affected, given the time and cost to visit a GP is substantially greater compared to metropolitan areas. For patients who do not have ready or affordable access to a medical practitioner, their pain management may go untreated or have delays in commencing treatment leading to an increase in presentations to hospitals.”
Mr Tambassis said pharmacists and their staff were available to “help advise patients on alternatives to medicines containing codeine”. “One of the guild’s concerns is that removing complete access to these low-dose codeine medicines will see prescriptions being written for stronger doses of codeine or other opiates, and thus potentially adding to the already significant prescription codeine problems,” he said.
Other medicines becoming prescription-only are Panadeine Extra, Panafen Plus, Aspalgin, Codis, Dispirin Forte, Codral Original Cold & Flu, Demazin Day & Night Cold & Flu, and equivalent generic products.