AUGUST ,Edition # 31 , 2001

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Editor's Note:
Heather Pym is a new writer for Computachem Newsletter.
She works as a consultant pharmacist in the Melbourne Division of General Practice and is, therefore, in a position to give a GP perspective on pharmacy activities.
Attitudes and values of either profession, as viewed by the GPs and pharmacists, can vary from "poles apart", to "very close", depending on who is doing the viewing and what is being viewed.
Many pharmacists have shut out some of the criticisms levelled at them by GP's, not fully understanding how they arise. It is pleasing to know that both professions are beginning to reach out to each other to form useful alliances for ultimate community benefit. This can only be a "win/win" situation.
In her first article, Heather gives an insight as to why some GP's acted negatively to the concept of medication reviews.
Those of you who wish to embrace a professional relationship with GPs will take Heather's comments on board, and begin to negotiate some positive alliances.
Perhaps there is some hope after all for the "health team" approach...........

"For the past two years I have had the privilege of working with members of the Melbourne Division of General Practice as a consultant pharmacist.
There are over 600 GP members in this Division and I have come to know and respect many of them over this time.
Pharmacists work with doctors routinely in Hospital Practice and the expertise of both professions is well regarded by each other. Together they offer a dimension to the Institution they work in that is a missing link in the community.
Through my work with GPs I feel that there are ways of forging these relationships in the community that will have a tripartite benefit - mutual to the professionals and a definite benefit to the public.
To accomplish this though, there will need to be greater mutual respect and knowledge of the respective practice each works in.
It saddens me that this issue was not universally addressed when pharmacists were given the opportunity of working in Nursing Homes reviewing medication charts.
Many GPs, rightly so, saw the pharmacist reviews as pharmacist's 'scrutiny'.
It was as though a GP, given the right, came into your dispensary in the dead of night, looked over your work practices etc, left notes, mainly about what you were not doing well, and improvement suggestions, and left.
Not nice, and also not much you would take notice of!
In all these human activities where knowledge is shared THE RELATIONSHIP is of the utmost importance.
This, and the background for prescribing decisions are the first steps in a pharmacist being able to add an iota to the value of a medication review.
These observations I hope will help in assuring that the next opportunity of working together, that of domiciliary medication reviews (DMMR) get off on the right track.
It is the intention of this Division to work with pharmacists and the member GPs to establish relationships as a priority and as a necessary requisite for the success of the DMMR scheme.
I hope my observations in working with GPs in particular will offer some insight into their working situation that will help pharmacists forge relationships with the professionals they hope to work with.
Having been a pharmacist in practice for many years I note that GP situations do not vary much from our own and have a lot in common."
Ends

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