Maintaining professional boundaries: A reminder for pharmacists
Meridian Lawyers has collaborated with PDL to prepare an article about professional boundaries and the types of conduct that are likely to be the subject of complaint to regulators. The article references Ahpra’s 2022/23 annual report, which revealed 841 notifications involving possible failures to maintain appropriate professional boundaries. At the lower end of the spectrum, […]
Recognising when a pharmacist needs support
PDL Professional Officers continue to receive enquiries and incident reports that have contributing factors such as pressure, stress, workload or fatigue. PDL recognises the high demands placed on community and hospital pharmacists including interns, pharmacy owners and other staff members have not eased. The ongoing staffing challenge is impacting pharmacists in the community and hospital […]
The art of saying sorry
Meridian Lawyers issue state and territory-specific guides It’s OK to say sorry. Pharmacists are human beings and fallible, so despite their best efforts, adverse events and mistakes can still occur. A key component of managing an incident is offering a sincere apology when an incident occurs. When dealing with an incident or complaint, no matter […]
Declining supply
The recent experiences of pharmacists dealing with the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic will help to inform practice into the future. One aspect of practice that has been highlighted at this time is the pharmacist’s role in managing medicine supply and declining to supply on certain occasions. PDL is aware of complaints to pharmacy owners […]
Support and resources during COVID-19 pandemic
PDL would like to express its support for pharmacists playing a vital role in assisting the community at this time. We understand that many pharmacists and staff are working extremely hard and under significant pressure to ensure their patients receive the best possible care and support. As an organisation focused on risk management we understand […]
Aggressive behaviour of the public towards pharmacists
Aggression towards pharmacists is sometimes used as a bullying tactic by an individual to get their own way in such matters as the early supply of staged supply or the prompt dispensing of a prescription for a restricted drug that requires further checking with a prescriber. Rude and aggressive behaviour is also often displayed towards pharmacy staff who […]
The importance of saying sorry
Sooner or later most pharmacists can expect to be presented with a complaint. Even the pettiest disputes over a price for medication, can become protracted, particularly if it is referred to a regulatory organisation such as the Health Complaints Commission or the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. To provide some guidance on what to do […]
