You have probably heard about the recently published Pharmacy Action Plan 2016-2020, by now. If you are as busy as I am, this announcement will have ended up in the “may look at it later, or not at all” basket. You may also think that, like many other top-down initiatives, this too is just another gig that’s just going to happen to us regardless. So, why should we care, right? Aren’t we busy enough as it is? Well, let me give you three compelling reasons why you should learn more about the Plan and get involved one way or another.
Although, one could come up with a whole bunch of reasons, I picked the ones I think will give you an incentive to think about the Plan and get involved. And, since I like to look at all things pharmacy with my law-glasses on, I’ll give you some insight on the legal aspects of the issues as well.
The Three Main Reasons for You to Start Getting Familiar with the Pharmacy Action Plan 2016-2020
1. It is not a done deal yet
OK, so the Plan itself has been published, and the general direction of the development in the coming years has been finalised (well, sort of). In reality, not only is it just a big skeleton without much flesh, but the skeleton itself is not fully formed. For example, there is much work to be done from a legal perspective. The Ministry of Health took it on itself (finally!) to replace the Medicines Act. This has been long overdue, and it’s needless to go into any detail why it needed to be replaced so badly, and why we should be all glad that it’s finally happening. But I digress. The repeal and replacement of the Medicines Act and Regulations is an enormous undertaking. It is complex and, at this stage, nobody knows exactly what the new regime, the Therapeutic Products Regulatory Regime, will look like.
Suffice to mention briefly that this regulatory reform will go through an established process, which is fundamentally democratic, and there will be opportunities at certain key stages to provide feedback and comments. I wrote about this in more detail on request from the CCPG. The Ministry of Health published a number of documents to outline the main features of the new regime. There are a number of controversial points, such as changes in pharmacy ownership restrictions and the creation of a new Supervisory Pharmacist role, which should be addressed and commented on, when the first draft of the Bill is published.
The take home message of this first point is that even the Plan itself has its fundamental uncertainties. In many ways, it’s still hanging in the air, and there are a lot of unknowns right from the get-go. So, it’s not a done deal, by far.
2. See into the future
Knowing where things are headed is equally important, whether you are starting your career as a young pharmacist, or you are in a senior position, perhaps a business owner. Actually, if you are a business owner, you definitely want to know the future. But, since crystal balls are hard to come by, we can use the Plan.
You can think of the Plan as a roadmap. Although there are a few blank spots and sometimes the directions are indicated a bit vaguely, it’s still a pretty good guide. For a young and ambitious pharmacist, the Plan can help identify new and exciting career options. For example, you can find out that the Plan envisages a shift in pharmacy practice where pharmacists will have more clinical role, so if you are clinically minded you will definitely like this. If you are into technology, you can read what the Plan says about integrating new IT solutions and Smart Systems into the health system. Or, if your are a people person, you will be interested in what the Plan says about the importance of leadership in pharmacy and its role in improving the health system.
Leadership and Workforce are prominent part of the Plan, and this will be particularly interesting for pharmacists in senior and managerial positions. And you, business owners, unless you lived under a rock, you are already very well aware and worry about the proposals to change ownership restrictions and the licensing requirements. And many of you will be pleased to see the PACT project mentioned in the Plan.
3. Change the future
Any plan, no matter how detailed, has to be implemented, that’s what puts the flesh on to the skeleton. And it really does matter just how exactly a plan of this size and import is implemented. So those of you who are not satisfied with just simply being aware of where things are headed, you have an opportunity to be part of, and even change the course of, the development.
The Pharmacy Action Plan has got a decent amount of detail as to the “what” and to some extent the “who”, but it isn’t so strong on the “how”. For example, the plan says that the pharmacy sector needs to work on its image, to promote pharmacists as a trusted source of information. In other words, we know who needs to do what but the how is left up to your imagination. The who is important, because it could be you. The Plan often mentions that the “pharmacy sector” will carry out this part or that part of the Plan, but I’m not sure sometimes who exactly is expected to act. We are so all over the place, community pharmacy and hospital, manufacturing, wholesale, marketing, and the list goes on. The PSNZ has taken “a lead responsibility for many actions” in the Plan, but I digress. The point is that you have an opportunity step up and be the who.
Now the how is what really makes this reform so exciting to be part of. And I would like to conclude this piece with this: it is an absolutely unique opportunity for all you creative thinkers to engage your brain and make this reform, not just happen, but happen in a brilliant way.
You can download the Pharmacy Action Plan 2016-2020 here. I recommend you read it and share your thoughts below in the comment section.
