Page 4012 - Week 11 - Thursday, 26 September 2019
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(1) The ACT public hospital has alternative arrangements to ensure that patients access to PBS medications is not limited as a result of the ACT not being a signatory to the PHPRA. These arrangements include:
• Non-oncology and haematology patients are provided with a discharge prescription.
• PBS medicines are obtained on behalf of oncology patients in Canberra Hospital and Calvary Public Hospital through a signed agreement with Slade Pharmacy Services. Slade Pharmacy Services is an external organisation with a PBS license.
• Non-admitted patients, such as emergency department patients, take their discharge prescriptions to community pharmacies for filling. These are dispensed through the PBS, external to the hospital system. Community pharmacies require patients to pay the PBS co-payment.
• Public hospital outpatients, through ACT public hospital pharmacies, are able to access medicines on the S100 Highly Specialised Drugs Program, and do so for some chemotherapy.
• For hospital outpatients, prescriptions for non-S100 drugs are dispensed by community pharmacies.
(2) The arrangements described under answer (1) demonstrate that ACT public hospital patients have access to PBS medications, i.e. access is not limited by the ACT not being a signatory to the PHPRA.
(3) Refer to answer (1).
(4) The ACT has not concluded that the PHPRA limits patients’ access to PBS medications, and has therefore not communicated this to the Commonwealth.
(5) ACT is not privy to data relating to the implementation of the PHPRA in jurisdictions that are PHPRA signatories.
Hospitals—navigation services
(Question No 2580)
Mrs Dunne asked the Minister for Health, upon notice, on 2 August 2019:
(1) What navigation services and pathways are in place to assist (a) patients, (b) carers, (c) staff, (d) private medical practitioners, other health professionals and allied health professionals, (e) the general public and (f) other users, to navigate (i) the public hospital system, (ii) other public health services (excluding mental health) and (iii) public mental health services.
(2) Who (a) in government and (b) in non-government, operates these pathways and services.
(3) Who is responsible for ensuring the (a) complementarity of these services and pathways and (b) the elimination of overlaps that have the potential to cause confusion.
(4) Are all these services and pathways fully complementary currently; if no (a) why and (b) what action is being taken to ensure full complementarity.
(5) When were these services and pathways last reviewed.
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