No 0811: April 10th, 2008
eNews is a weekly electronic news=
letter
sent to all GP practices (with email addresses) within the
= Editorial &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; &nbs= p; No eNews next week=
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Aged Care &=
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nbsp; Aged
Care Funding Instrument, Melbourne CAREX ,
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Chronic
Disease Management=
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Community
Asthma Program, Neuropathy research
= Professional Developm= ent &= nbsp; &nbs= p; CPD events &nbs= p;
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HMR =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; Patient
Medication Profile, Paperless Prescriptions, PBS prescriptions fall
= Immunisation= &= nbsp; &nbs= p; &= nbsp; Pertussis Myths and Facts, Immunisation Handbook &= nbsp; <= /p>
=
In=
formation
Management =
; includes Medical Director tips
and New on the Web
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Items o=
f interest &=
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p; &=
nbsp; Suicide
Helpline, Prostate cancer testing, GP Network news &nbs=
p;
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News fo=
r Practice
Staff &=
nbsp; Practice
Nurses working with Mental Health Issues
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NPS &nb=
sp; =
&nb=
sp; =
NPS
Diabetes Audit, New Publications of Interest
= Women’s Health &= nbsp; &nbs= p; Post Partum Perineal Trauma - What to do when it all= falls apart? Menor= rhagia &= nbsp;
= Positions vacant/wanted &= nbsp; &nbs= p;
Fun stuff
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Due to improving we=
ather
conditions the editor will be taking a week off and therefore there will be=
no eNews next week. Next edition due=
24th
April.
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The CPD that was to be held on Wednesday 16th A= pril is now CANCELLED.
If any GP or practice nurse would like an education session on ACFI plea=
se
contact
April 16 & 17 at the Caulfield Racecourse, 9.30am &=
#8211;
4pm each day, FREE ADMISSION.
· To view details of the event including venue, parking, exhibitor list, floor plan - click here
· To register your attendance - click here
· To view details of & register for any of= the free workshops - click here
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The Community Asthma Program (CAP) is having some problems with GP's usi= ng an old, incorrect fax number to send through referrals to our program.
Community Asthma Program (CAP) - fax referrals to 9345 6231
New research in a possible treatment for neuropathy associated with diabetes, using painless nerve stimulation. We are looking for patients to = take part in a 12-week study. Inclusion criteria: • Between 55 – 75 years old • Have had diabetes for 10 years or less • Non-smokers • Peripheral neuropathy
The study takes place at the Endocrine Centre of Excellence,
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For GPs and Practice Managers and Practice Nurses. The evening will look at TWO new and exciting developments in general pract= ice – the Practice Health Atlas and the Pen Clinical Audit Tool (see editorial). You will be able to sign up for one or both on the nigh= t.
Wednesday April 23, 2008, 6:30pm – 9.00pm (dinner provided), John Scott Meeting House, La Trobe University, Bundoora (E= ntry via Car Park 7). [Applicati= on Form]
Meetings are held each Tuesday starting at 12.30 in the
Lecture Theatre, Ground Floor, Pathology Building, Repatriation Hospital,
Austin Health, West Heidelberg. Lunch is provided. Course Leader: Dr Vin
April 15 - Menorrhagia - Dr Jillian Woinarski and the following week
For full term Tuesday lecture program click here
Genetic Services - “Genetics for the Heart: The Practice of
Genetic Medicine” Speaker: Dr Nicholas Pachter,
FRACP, Clinical Geneticist, Victorian Clinical Genetics Services
Wedne=
sday
16th April, 2008 12:10pm at John Lin=
dell
Lecture Theatre, Level 4,
Opposite Medical Library - followed by lunch in Zel= tner Hall at 1:00pm
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In a new scheme starting this month community pharmacists are to give ‘at risk’ patients a visual and written summary of all the medicines they are taking in an effort to improve compliance and avoid adve= rse events. Participating pharmacies will charge customers $5 to provide them w= ith a Patient Medication Profile, which will list all current prescription, OTC= and complementary medicines. The profile will give the patient’s medicati= on details, directions for use, alternative brands and the reasons for use. And within six months the medication profiles will also include colour images of PBS medicines to help patients identify their medicines. The $34 million program is a collaboration between the F= ederal health department and Pharmacy Guild, and will see pharmacies receive subsi= dies of $4200 for taking part. To be eligible, patients must be on a regular prescription medication and not be a nursing home resident or hospital inpatient.
Jenny Gowan suggests that the Patient Medication Profile should be linke= d to an HMR referral to give an accurate list of ALL the medications that patien= ts are taking – OTC and complementary. Further information about Home Medicine Reviews from Jenny Gowan at NDGP 94= 16 7689
The Pharmacy Guild of Australia announced its support for the model, cal=
led ScriptX, at APP2008. The system allows doctors to sen=
d scripts
to a fully encrypted electronic mailbox, allowing patients to retrieve the
medication at their pharmacy of choice. Initially, paper prescriptions will=
be
issued alongside the eprescription until the Gu=
ild
and other health professionals are confident the system works. At that stage
the Guild will approach government about phasing out paper-based prescribin=
g,
Guild president, Kos Sclavos, said. He said one=
of the
most important aspects of the electronic system was that it stored scripts =
in a
central repository for retrieval at a pharmacy the patient chooses, rather =
than
the “point-to-point” structure used in the
Medicare
There has been a massive fall in the number of PBS prescriptions in
Community Pharmacy Agreement, creating a saving of around $700 million f= or this year alone. = Full article
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6. Myth: Natural infection with pertussis or vaccination provides lifelong protection.
Fa=
ct: Immunity
to pertussis, whether from vaccination or natur=
ally
acquired infection, only lasts for approximately six to ten years. The
National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) re=
commends
a booster dose with an acellular pertussis-containing
vaccine (dTpa) for teenagers aged 15-17 years o=
f age
or adults requiring a booster. A booster can be administered at any time
following a previously administered dose of tetanus to=
xoid-containing
vaccine.
7. Myth: The
NHMRC recommendations for pertussis cover child=
ren
and adolescents only.
The 9th Edition of The Australian Immunisation
Handbook was officially launched on Tuesday 8 April 2008 in
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Click in the Obstetric tab (female patients only) and then click on the New pregnancy button. Enter the LMP or By Scan date and click on t= he Calculate button and then Save.
Question: How do I record t= wins in the obstetric section?
Answer: You can’t! Th= ere is only room to record ONE baby’s name. This shortcoming of recording multiple births was brought to the attention of HCN several years ago and no change has been made. Is there a “workaround”? Not really, you = can add both babies’ names to the Notes but this is a poor way of recordi= ng the information.
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New Suicide Helpline Call-back Service: 1300 6= 59 467 (Monday- Friday 9am to 5pm)
SHL CB offers up to 6 sessions of telephone counselling, of approx 50
Support is for: people at risk of suicide; carers of people who are suic= idal; people bereaved by suicide.
The service caters for CALD clients and uses TIS interpreters.
The Cancer Council is advising GPs to expect a surge in the number of
requests they receive for PSA tests, as a result of football personality Sam
Newman’s highly publicised prostate cancer surgery. The Cancer Council
has responded to media coverage of Sam Newman’s surgery by urging men=
not
to be panicked into having a PSA test. Instead, men are encouraged to have a
discussion with their GP about the issues around prostate cancer testing and
treatment so they can make an informed decision about whether testing is ri=
ght
for them.
So why does the Cancer Council advise men to
consult their GP about prostate cancer testing, rather than advocate
population-based screening for all men of a specified age?
‘The answer is that not all men who have a prostate specific antig= en (PSA) test will benefit from it. In fact, some may be harmed, so individual= men should understand the pros and cons and make an informed decision,’ s= aid CEO of The Cancer Council Australia, Professor Ian Olv= er.
This edition contains Education Events By Pharmaceutical Companies, New PBS Listings, Close the Gap, National Electronic Prescribing System on its Way. <= span class=3DGramE>Full version.
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This session will provide an excellent opportunity to meet your local me= ntal health service providers and for you to learn: more about their mental heal= th services – who they are, what they do, what patients they provide ser= vice to and how to refer to them; how prevalent are mental health issues; how to identify mental health issues; how to manage risk; how to navigate the ment= al health services.
Small group learning: Three case studies will be discussed which will include examples of relevant pathways and appropriate referrals.
Tuesday May 13, 6:30pm – 9pm= (dinner provided), John Scott Meeting House, La Trobe<= /span> University, Bundoora (Entry via Car Park 7). Application Form
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Friday April 11th is the deadline for submission of the 1st audit for the = May 2008/April 2009 QPI PIP entitled ‘Optimizing management of type 2 diabetes’.
Please send completed audits directly to NPS.
The April 2008 issue of Vol 31 No 2 is now online: Articles include Compounding in community pharmacy [editoria= l]; The role of drugs in road safety; Treatment of perinat= al depression; Ear drops and ototoxicity; Therapeu= tic drug monitoring: which drugs, why, when and how to do it; Corticosteroid-induced osteoporosis and fracture; New drug reviews include lenalidomide, nilotinib, paliperidone, = raltegravir, rotigotine, = sitagliptin
The current edition of NPS News No 57 April 2008 focuses on improving outcomes in chronic heart failure: Discussion points include: Identify, diagnose & intervene early; Targeted education works; ACE inhibitors fi= rst line; Use heart failure specific beta blockers; Avoid drugs that exacerbate heart failure also Case study 52: Optimising chronic heart failure therapy = is available .
The current ADRAC Bulletin Vo=
l 27
No 2 April 2008: Considers Nicorandil<=
/span>-associated
ulceration; Withdrawal of lumiracoxib in
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Tuesday
22 April 2008 7 - 9pm (refreshments from 6.30pm) at Lecture Theatre,
Level 4,
RSVP to Merran McDonald on 8458 4833 or=
email
mmcdonald@mercy.com.au or Jan=
ine
Martin on 8458 4819
April 15 – the Tuesday GP lecture see under CPD<=
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Please
note: only new ads, paid ads or resubmitted ads will be posted here. All ot=
her
ads can be found on the website
North= cote area – Full time Div 1 Practice Nurse required to assist our medical staff in a busy general practice. Duties include wound care, travel health, immunisatons, health assessments, patient triage and all other duties required in a general practice. Visit our website = www.doctorsofnorthcote.com for more information. To apply, forward your resume to manager@doctorsofnorthcote.c= om.
Sunshine - solo GP practice with an elderly patient base seeks=
to
employ a mature minded, part-time Div 1 Practice Nurse. The hours of work w=
ill
be 2 x 5 hour morning sessions per week initially, with the option to incre=
ase
hours depending on future patient load. Please call the Practice Manager on=
03
9 311 2979 with enquiries or to obtain a position descr=
iption
. Send your WRITTEN application to:=
Dr S. Selvendra, c/-
See the = website for all other positions vacant and wanted
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An elderly couple was attending a church service and ab= out halfway through she leans over and says to her husband, “I just silen= tly broke wind. What do you think I should do?”
He replies “Put a new battery in your hearing aid=
.”
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