Queensland’s nation-leading Collaborative Pharmacist Medication Prescribing to make hospital care safer and more efficient

9 April 2025

 

 

Queensland is continuing to lead the nation in improving access to care, becoming the first jurisdiction to introduce state-wide Collaborative Pharmacist Medication Prescribing, allowing pharmacists to prescribe certain medicines in collaboration with a medical practitioner or nurse practitioner in both public and private hospitals. This includes charting medicines for administration in inpatient settings and prescribing medicines for supply to patients on discharge or in an outpatient setting.

 

The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) welcomes the move celebrating the Queensland Government for their nation-leading reform, which PSA’s vision Pharmacists in 2030 specifically highlights as a key system change needed to improve access to care.

 

PSA Queensland Vice-President and Hospital Pharmacy Practice CSI member Hannah Knowles MPS said better using pharmacist’s scope will mean better hospital care for Queenslanders.

 

“Collaborative Pharmacist Medication Prescribing is a welcome and progressive step that places patients at the centre of care. It enables pharmacists and prescribers to work side by side to ensure medicines are used safely, effectively, and efficiently,” Ms Knowles said

 

“Evidence from existing partnered charting models shows when pharmacists are actively involved in prescribing, we see fewer medication errors, stronger interdisciplinary communication, and better patient outcomes – particularly during hospital stays and transitions of care. These models also support reduced length of stay and improved patient flow, helping to ease pressure on busy emergency departments and reduce the number of patients waiting for a bed.”

 

“These developments reflect the evolving role of pharmacists as medicines experts and build on the valuable work already happening across Queensland – supporting clinical decision-making, identifying and managing medication-related problems, and ensuring patients and their GPs receive accurate, timely medication information at discharge.”

 

“On behalf of the PSA, I thank the Queensland Government for supporting this initiative and for recognising the vital role pharmacists play in improving patient care and reducing medicine-related harm in our hospitals,” Ms Knowles concluded.

 

Chair of PSA’s Hospital Pharmacy Practice Community of Specialty Interest Professor Michael Dooley MPS said the state-wide adoption of a collaborative prescribing model was particularly exciting, paving the way for further national expansion.

 

“There is clear evidence that the collaborative practice model works, improving prescribing and significantly reducing medication errors,” Professor Dooley said.

 

“This model was established at the Alfred over 10 years ago and has expanded across many clinical areas, it’s a truly collaborative model developed with our medical colleagues that allows pharmacists to practice to our full scope.

 

“We’ve seen collaborative practice develop over time as individual services adopt the model, but to have this state-wide adoption is really exciting and should be a catalyst for other jurisdictions to follow.

 

“I’m looking forward to seeing how this model improves practice and patient care across Queensland,” Professor Dooley concluded.

 

 

 

Media contact:   Georgia Clarke   M: 0480 099 798  E: georgia.clarke@psa.org.au