All you US pharmacists are probably well aware of Jim Plagakis and his insightful website. If not you should be. I won’t say more because you are better off going straight there and finding out for yourself.

Jim was the inspiration for starting this blog section of this site to provide an Australian perspective on the profession, when he posted a reply of mine which can be found here. Essentially it is a brief run down on the Australian pharmacy system, so if you’re from Australia skip that and go straight to Jim’s blog. For those who want to know a little more about how (in general) the Australian system may compare to their own, have a quick read, and then be sure to take a look at Jim’s blog, definitely worth going back and looking at the older posts as well.

The material for this comment comes from a question asked through our ‘Ask a Question’ portal. Of course no specific detail will given as all medication question are confidential, but these red-flagged questions will hopefully be educational to our non medical readers, and those pharmacy students/new pharmas who need to remember to check any drug combined with pregnancy (or lactation for that matter) and not assume its probably okay because its not one of those extreme Catagory X drugs you get scared with at university.

A question posed was if a certain blood pressure medication is okay to take while pregnant. This person already was pregnant and there was a reasonable amount of time before her next doctor’s appointment and hence when this issue would have been discussed. (more…)

A colleague recently mentioned he had heard Vitamin D can be used against H1N1 (Swine Flu). I decided to look into this should a flurry of queries come in from customers once this leaks to a radio program or current affairs program (where apparently there are right 100% of the time, according to many customers).

This link includes some info but I can’t comment on the reliability of the source. The NEJM (New England Journal of Medicine) has a post but I haven’t got access at the moment. (more…)

When Drug Counselling Goes Bad

I’m not sure about you, but I’m not feeling the joy here. This was pulled from a leaflet I found in the dispensary, as captivated as I was by the image, I didn’t read the entire contents, but it was something about asking your pharmacist about your meds, which is an excellent point, but, yes, what caption would you give that image…?

Well, yes we are free, for you the reader, but of course like anything, there are setup costs of us builders. Certain site advertising can come off as obtrusive, and since the initial version of this site was launch in May 09, there was zero advertising as I tried to steer clear of the popups and so forth. However, it seemed appropriate as more interest rose in the site that upgrading may be a necessary option in the future and the costs that are coupled with such a move.

Foremost in mind was not to have products that do not reflect the core purpose of this site, while the site will be a lighthearted look at pharma issues for both fellow pharmas and medicos, as well as the public, the ads you will see are aimed to be products which are ethical and appropriate. If you have any complaints or notice an ad that is generated that you believe is not appropriate, please contact us to have it removed.

As above. This site is primarily to act as a contact point for those medication questions you may want to ask and we can hopefully provide answers to, but this posts/blog page will fundamentally be home to me, AustralianPharma. While this site started out as a frame for questions to be submitted to be answered by a Registered Pharmacist, I was inspired by my pharmacist colleagues in the US whose tales of the daily dispensary grind to expand the posts page into a blog. In my comments on these blogs I was asked questions about the system here in Australia, so though this blog could be a good reference for those wanting to know how this system works here, as well as those in Australia who can relate to what the blog contains.

I am not sure how regular this will be, and the priority is always to answer the medication questions we receive from our readers. Ultimately, I hope this will provide an interesting and irreverent account of my and my colleagues pharmacy travels. Please, do not take this blog section too seriously, it is one pharmacist’s account of what is going around them, and should be taken lightly. (more…)

This page will contain all the compact up to date news and facts as they come to hand in the pharmaceutical world. This is an informal, and we hope enjoyable, read that gives the perspective of this site’s admin on the way pharma is going at the moment. This site is aimed both at pharmacists, other health professionals, and of course the public. As the name suggests, this is a no obligation website where you may ask any drug related question you wish and you will receive a prompt reply. In addition to the evolving posts, we will have some set links which are a FAQ type page on topics we pharmacists continually are asked about. However, if you don’t find the answer you are looking for – ask!

Seems most of the issues resolved, but if you notice any glitches on the site, please feel free to report them, and let us know what browser you are using. At the moment the site is optimized for IE and Safari, which means it should be compatible across the board.

We’re online! …okay, to those persons who use this site to ask questions, yes, we have been online since May this year, but the blog section was not used and we have re-jigged (that’s definitely a word) a few things and we will be having a regular blog from the perspective of an Australian pharmacist. We give full credit to the US blogs who have inspired us to actually make use of this blog function of the site which has been dormant for the past few months. The site was setup simply as a portal for the public to ask as medication questions, but no reason it can’t be for both!

People are often put off by the very title quit smoking, as it does have the implication as you need to stop, straight away. This is not always the case. There are a variety of approaches  to reducing smoking, and down the road quitting. Of course there is always the option to stop straight away, with or without a product, however if you do not feel comfortable with the cold turkey approaches, there are other paths to take to the goal of no longer needing to light up.

Most people are familiar with patches and gum. There are also inhalers and lozenges for those not comfortable with chewing gum, for example it may not be appropriate in their work place. For others there is a preference to patches which discreetly give the body a suitable dose of nicotine that can avoid cravings. These are available to wear from morning until bedtime, as well as 24 hours patches that can give around the clock control of cravings. Which one should you use? The first points to consider is any health conditions you may have as well as medications. In those instances it is appropriate to seek your GPs opinion, however, you can check with your pharmacist whether those conditions/medications have any impact upon the decision. If they do, the pharmacist would then advise you to see your doctor before starting to administer any nicotine products. Medical reasoning aside, it is personal preference what type of nicotine replacement you use. The important part is to consider how much you currently smoke to then allow you to chose a strength of whatever form you choose. (more…)