Revised guidelines now in effect

07 Dec 2015

The Pharmacy Board of Australia (the Board) is reminding pharmacists that revised guidelines published in September take effect today.

The revised guidelines provide guidance to the profession on a range of issues. The early release of the guidelines was so pharmacists could become familiar with their content before implementation.

The revised guidelines now in effect are:

• Guidelines for dispensing of medicines
• Guidelines on practice-specific issues
  • Guideline 1 Reference texts for pharmacists
• Guidelines on dose administration aids and staged supply of dispensed medicines, and
• Guidelines for proprietor pharmacists.

Some of the changes to the guidelines were highlighted by the Board in September.

Under section 41 of the National Law¹, Board guidelines can be used in disciplinary proceedings under the National Law or law of a co-regulatory jurisdiction, as evidence of what constitutes appropriate professional conduct or practice for pharmacists.

When considering notifications (complaints) against pharmacists, the Board may give consideration to whether a breach of Board guidelines has taken place.

The revised guidelines are available in the Codes, Guidelines and Policies section of this website.

¹The Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, as in force in each state and territory (the National Law).

For more information

• Lodge an online enquiry form
• For registration enquiries: 1300 419 495 (within Australia) +61 3 9275 9009 (overseas callers)
• For media enquiries: (03) 8708 9200

Download a PDF of this Media release - Pharmacy Board of Australia revised guidelines now in effect - 7 December 2015 (136 KB,PDF)