The NPA recently hosted an international forum. Its public affairs manager Gareth Jones highlights shared issues and key national differences

I have previously discussed the impact of European decision making policies on pharmacy practice here in the UK, but sometimes it can be beneficial to reflect on differences in pharmacy practice across the world to understand the commonalities, as well as the key differences.

Recently, the NPA hosted a forum of national pharmacy associations from across the main English-speaking countries. Pharmintercom brings together pharmacy representatives from countries such as New Zealand, Ireland, USA, Canada and South Africa consider topics such as major health reforms, business viability, e-health and what pharmacy may look like in 10 years’ time.

Certainly there were obvious differences, not least the comparison of the NHS in the UK versus the interconnected systems of private and publicly funded services across other parts of the world. This major difference was also reflected in the evaluation of pharmacy remuneration and reimbursement systems.

Other countries in the world seem to be further along with some aspects of IT and technology development. The majority of pharmacies in New Zealand and the U.S, for example, are now connected to a fully integrated electronic prescription and reimbursement service. And pharmacies in Australia and Canada are being granted access to electronic health records. Other countries are highlighting the importance of two-way communication between pharmacists and other eligible professionals through an electronic health record system.

The use of telehealth services is also growing in popularity. In California, pharmacy has been involved with a funded programme to provide comprehensive medication management (CMM) for patients with poor chronic disease control. This involved access to patient electronic health records and also utilisation of video telehealth services in some of the clinics.

Rising prescription volumes was highlighted as a common reality across most of the English-speaking countries. As a result of fixed funding envelopes and cost-cutting of generic drugs, pharmacy profitability in many nations is experiencing a slight decrease. This is further compounded by worldwide medicine shortages caused by global supply constraints and quality issues with raw materials.

The themes of ‘medicines optimisation’ – namely the safe and effective use of medicines to enable the best possible outcomes – was echoed by all countries involved in the forum. Various nations commented on the desire from their government to optimise pharmacists’ role within the community, integrated with other health care services.

This desire has been supported by investment in new community pharmacy services such as medicines management and vaccination, as well as collaboration with primary care. In Ireland for example, 1 in 10 flu vaccinations during the 2014/15 season took place in community pharmacy. Meanwhile in Canada, a new Pharmacy Act was passed in Prince Edward Island, expanding the scope of pharmacy practice to include administering injections, minor ailments prescribing, providing emergency prescriptions, and ordering/interpreting lab tests.

Common issues include the supply chain, interprofessional relationships, funding and competition. So despite their many differences, pharmacists from across the globe are not completely worlds apart.