Community pharmacy initiatives
A range of community pharmacy initiatives will support access to medicines and health care.
SA Community Pharmacy Oral Contraceptive Pill (OCP) Resupply Services
From 6 May 2024, South Australian women will be able to speak to trained community pharmacists for advice and access to resupply of their oral contraceptive pill without a doctor’s prescription, if they meet certain clinical criteria.
Information for healthcare professionals
Community pharmacists who have completed additional training will be able to provide resupply of approved oral contraceptive pills to eligible patients. This will be in accordance with the conditions of the Community Pharmacy OCP Resupply Services, as determined by the Minister for Health and Wellbeing by notice in the Government Gazette (PDF 141KB).
These services complement those available through other health providers such as GPs, providing access and choice for consumers to get the health advice and care they need in a timely manner. This also complements the existing Continued Dispensing (for PBS items) and emergency supply arrangements.
Patient eligibility
Women aged 17 to 50 years are eligible to be considered for the service. Those who have been stabilised on an approved OCP continuously for 2 years, and who have seen a GP or other authorised prescribing healthcare practitioner for review in the last 2 years will be eligible for Community Pharmacy OCP Resupply Services as follows:
- Women aged 17 to 40 years will be able to receive one original manufacturer’s pack of their OCP at any one time, with additional resupply available up to a maximum of 12 months.
- Women aged 41 to 50 years will be able to receive one original manufacturer’s pack of their OCP, with referral to their GP (or other authorised prescribing healthcare practitioner) required for review and further supply.
These services are inclusive of transgender, gender diverse, and non-binary people assigned and/or presumed female at birth.
Patients who meet the above criteria will be asked about their current treatment and undergo a clinical review to determine whether resupply is safe and appropriate. Patients who have risk factors, contraindications, or other conditions that mean resupply is not considered safe or appropriate, will be referred to a GP or other healthcare professional as appropriate.
Pharmacist training
Completion of approved accredited training for pharmacists on contraception is mandatory prior to offering SA Community Pharmacy OCP Resupply Services.
Accredited training is currently provided by the Australasian College of Pharmacy (ACP) and the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA).
OCP Resupply Management Protocol
This resource was developed in consultation with medical and pharmacy experts, together with consumer input. It is based on international best practice, clinical guidelines and professional standards on contraception.
Pharmacists should refer to the Protocol in conjunction with relevant professional practice standards and evidence based clinical guidelines, including The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare UK Medical Eligibility Criteria: for contraceptive use, UKMEC 2016 (Amended September 2019), the Therapeutic Guidelines and Australian Medicines Handbook, and the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia Professional Practice Standards 2023, version 6.
The Protocol is based on these evidence-based guidelines and provides a framework for pharmacists, including a Clinical Flow Chart that provides information to guide clinical decision-making and about appropriate referral to a GP or other health service.
Clinical documentation and patient information
Consultations, including any resupply of OCPs, will be documented and recorded by the pharmacist.
To support continuity of care, patients will be provided a record of their consultation and encouraged to pass on this information to their GP or health care provider. Pharmacists may, with patient consent, share a record of the consultation and any medicine supply with the patient’s usual treating GP or GP practice, where the patient has one.
Pharmacists will upload details of medicine supply into My Health Record, where a patient has one and with their consent.
Software to support clinical documentation
If your pharmacy uses MedAdvisor software to record professional pharmacy services, a Service form will soon be available to support South Australian pharmacists in documenting SA Community Pharmacy OCP Resupply Services consultations, however the form will not be available from commencement of the Scheme on 6 May 2024.
To assist pharmacists providing services, an electronic form is available to use for documentation of consultations from 6 May 2024. The form may be downloaded and printed, or completed electronically, to document OCP Resupply Service consultations. The completed form can be kept in the pharmacy records (electronic or physical), a copy provided to the patient as a record of the consultation, and a copy may be shared with the patient’s usual medical practitioner (if the patient consents).
Any referrals made as a result of an OCP resupply consultation will need to be generated by the usual processes of the pharmacy.
New referrals to GP and other health services
The OCP Resupply Services Management Protocol (PDF 582KB) includes a Clinical Flow Chart that provides information to guide clinical decision-making and about when referral to a GP or other health service is recommended.
As per usual practice under professional standards and codes, pharmacists will communicate sufficient, timely information about the patient to enable continuing safe care.
GPs and practice managers should be aware they may receive referrals from Community Pharmacy OCP Resupply Services, as pharmacists may seek to assist patients who require follow up.
Cost
Pharmacists may charge a consultation fee for the service, in addition to the cost of any medicine that is supplied. Pharmacists will ensure that the patient understands the costs involved when offering the service.
Feedback and questions
For feedback or questions, email health.communitypharmacyinitiatives@sa.gov.au