Redland Hospital patients could have their medications prescribed earlier and return home sooner, with Monika Ogilvie becoming the first Bayside Health Service pharmacist qualified to co-prescribe medications alongside doctors or nurse practioners.
“Pharmacists can identify dose adjustments, discrepancies or medication interventions and discuss these directly with the treating doctor beagreed changes,” Monika said.
Monika, who has worked at Bayside Health Service for more than 20 years, said the collaborative model could reduce delays throughout a patient’s hospital journey, from admission through to discharge.
“This model reduces the back-and-forth that can occur while waiting for a busy doctor to respond to medication interventions or preparing the discharge reconciliation.
“If we can identify and resolve medication issues earlier, we can help make the discharge process more efficient and get patients home sooner.”
Monika said co-prescribing also allowed doctors to devote more time to other clinical responsibilities.
“This is a collaborative model. The doctor remains closely involved in the patient’s care, but we can share some of the prescribing workload,” she said. “I hope more pharmacists will complete the required training so we can expand the benefits for patients and clinical teams across Bayside Health Service.”