24 hour reliefAerius contains desloratadine. ©2012 MSD Consumer Care, Inc. All rights reserved. Level 4, 66 Waterloo Road, North Ryde, NSW 2113. RESP-1010959-0040 07/12 Saatchi & Saatchi Health MAER0025/PD

1. Label claim comparison. 2. Canonica GW, et al. Allergy 2007;62(4):359-366. 3. Ortonne JP, et al. Am J Clin Dermatol 2007;8(1):37-42. 4. Bousquet J, et al. Int Arch Allergy Immunol 2010;153(4):395-402. 5. Bousquet J, et al. Allergy 2009;64:1516-1523. 6. Holmberg K, et al. Allergy 2009;64:1663-1670.7. Demoly P, et al. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol 2009;103:260-266. 8. Ortonne JP. Eur J Intern Med 2012 January;23(1):26-30. 9. Ring J, et al. Int J Dermatol 2001 January;40(1):72-76.

reduce the impact of symptoms with Aerius. With an unsurpassed

duration of action from its once daily dose,1 and efficacy supported

by the highest level of evidence,2,3 Aerius improves quality of life.4–9

Pharmacy Daily Monday 24th September 2012 T 1300 799 220 W www.pharmacydaily.com.au page 1

Monday 24 Sep 2012

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PD comp winner CONGRATULATIONS to JolyonHawley from Aspen Australia andZoe Blandfort of the PharmacyGuild, who both won a skincarepack in Pharmacy Daily’s Sukincompetition on Friday. For your chance to win today seethis week’s comp at left.

Aerius clears the air TODAY’s Pharmacy Daily featuresa special front full page from MSD,promoting 24 hour relief fromhayfever, allergies and hives fromits Aerius tablets.

New variations process THE Therapeutic GoodsAdministration has released detailsof new processes for “minorvariations to prescriptionmedicines,” after a reviewidentified the need for changes tobe consistent with regulatoryrequirements. Under the changes, prior TGAapproval is required for all minorvariations to prescription medicinesprior to their implementation, andare classified as either Safety-Related Requests (SRRs) or Self-Assessable Requests (SARs). Sponsors will be required tocomplete and submit new forms foreach type of minor variation whenmaking a request or application,and the existing 45 working dayprocessing timeframe will also beapplied. All safety-related requests will beprocessed as minor variations, anda new fee category will be appliedfor any requests requiring TGAevaluation of data, so the actualcost to sponsors won’t change. The changes will commencefollowing a process ofcommunication and consultationwith sponsors, with a three monthimplementation period. See www.tga.gov.au.

RGH E-Bulletin THIS week’s edition of theRepatriation General HospitalPharmacy E-Bulletin is aboutDuration of dual-antiplatelettherapy after coronary stenting,covering possible outcomes fromthe recent PRODIGY study. The bulletin can be downloadedfor free at auspharmlist.net.au/ebulletin.php.

Pulse founder files ROHAN Aujard, the founder ofthe collapsed Pulse Pharmacychain, has filed for bankruptcy. The move follows a rejection bycreditors of a $500,000 offer byAujard which would have equatedto a payout of 4c in the dollar,according to the Australian. In an email circulated to industrycontacts Aujard places the blamefor the collapse on SigmaPharmaceuticals which reduced thegroup’s trading terms from 120days to 90 and then 30 days,leading to significant cashflowproblems. Pulse Pharmacy, which includedmore than 70 branded stores acrossthe country, was placed intoreceivership in Dec 2011 owingmore than $72 million. Aujard’s email claims that Sigmacontinued to offer extended tradingterms to other groups, and that aproposal to switch supply to rivalwholesaler API was knocked backby his bankers.

Vitamin D deficiency alert RESEARCHERS from the Universityof Sydney have suggested a reviewof current guidelines for Vitamin Dsupplementation and testing, aftera study which revealed that “largesegments of the Australianpopulation are at risk of deficiencyfor prolonged periods of the year”. Professor Steven Boyages fromSydney Medical School and his PhDstudent Kellie Bilinski looked atvitamin D levels in more than24,000 samples taken from walk-inpatients and inpatients in NSWbetween Jul 2008 and Jul 2010,investigating the effect of age,gender, season, socioeconomicstatus and remoteness on results. They found that the lowest pointwas reached in early spring, ratherthan winter as previously thought,and that vitamin D deficiency was“higher and more persistent” thanhad been formerly understood. A previously unidentified at riskgroup for vitamin D deficiency wasalso found to be females aged 20-39, with further investigationrequired to discover the underlyingcause of this. Professor Boyages said that

ideally testing should occur inspring when levels of vitamin Dreach their lowest concentration,and “similarly, use of vitamin Dsupplements currently fails toaddress this factor of seasonalvariation”.

Adelaide robberies FOUR pharmacies were robbedacross Adelaide on the weekend,with a single culprit believed to bebehind the crime spree. The thief was armed with a knifeand wearing a skull mask in eachincident which saw staff threatenedat pharmacies in Blakeview,Alberton, Northfield and Parabanks,according to News Limited.

Market Strategy & OutcomesDevelop a pharmacy marketing strategy, create your own action plan and learn how to implement this into your pharmacy. This final Master Class for 2012 will be held at the St Leonards and presented by the team from Good Pharma and Instigo. The follow up program will ensure your questions are answered and your marketing plan is in place.

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Monday 24 Sep 2012

Weekly CommentWeekly CommentWeekly Comment

This week’s contributoris Paul Rowe, ChiefExecutive, RazorBusiness Solutions.

Avoiding Bankruptcy

EDITORS Bruce Piper and Amanda Collins EMAIL info@pharmacydaily.com.au ADVERTISING Magda Herdzik EMAIL advertising@pharmacydaily.com.au page 2

THE effects of bankruptcy can bedevastating and far-reaching butare there lessons we can learn toavoid the stigma and financialdisaster? Absolutely!DivorceOne of the quickest ways toreduce your assets is to getdivorced. The court can instructthat properties used as securityfor bank funding be removedleaving the business with nofunding lines. There is also theimpact on mental state, efficiencyand unwinding partnerships.Stick to your knittingHow many times have you seen asuccessful pharmacist buy a cafeor restaurant? How romantic! Ican entertain all my friends. Theamount of good businesses thatgo bankrupt supporting suchdiversification is enormous.Understand what you are doing,or employ someone who does.Pay your taxesFail to pay your taxes and watchyour pharmacy fail. The taxdepartment does not suffer foolsand ignorance is no defence.Understand your position;employ consultants from whomyou can get quality timely advice.Over gearingAll businesses have a level ofaffordable debt. Pharmacyvalues are based on a Return onInvestment divided into theEBITDA (Earnings before tax,depreciation and amortisation).So it is easier to find the debtlevel a pharmacy can afford.Gearing in excess of 80% canmean the pharmacy will be undercash flow pressure, especially ifyour personal expenditure ishigh!

Bankruptcy is a serious event sotake the time to learn from thepast and then you can enjoy thefuture.

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THIS year’s group of Ig Nobelprize winners has beenannounced, highlighting quirkydiscoveries by researchers fromaround the globe. Among the winners of the spoofawards recorded in the official“Annals of Improbable Research”is a Swedish scientist who solvedthe problem of why people’s hairturned green when living incertain houses in the town ofAnderslov, Sweden. The culprit turned out to be acombination of hot water andcopper pipes. A group of US researchers washonoured for their work inproving that chimpanzees are ableto recognise each other usingphotographs of their backsides. And two Japanese scientists werecited for inventing the so-calledSpeechJammer - a device whichrecords a person talking and playsit back with a very slight delay. "It's a small thing you aim atsomeone who is droning on andon," said an Ig Nobel spokesman. "What the person hears is justoff enough that it completelydisconcerts and discombobulatesthem, and they stop talking. “It has thousands of potentialgood uses," he said.

HERE’S a retailing brainwave thatyou’d probably only see in the US. A jeweller in metropolitanAtlanta is offering a free huntingrifle with every purchase of adiamond worth US$2500 or more. The owner, Mike Geller, said hegot the idea from a similar caryard promotion, and reassuredthe public by saying that his staffaren’t actually handing out gunsat the counter, but are insteadproviding a voucher which can beredeemed at a nearby gun dealer. Customers must also “follow alllaws governing the purchase offirearms,” according to USA Today. A number of reports quip thatthe offer will give couples forcedinto a shotgun wedding theopportunity to fight back.

Pharmacy vaccination push AUSTRALIA’S peak pharmacybody has urged states andterritories across Australia “to makelegislative and regulatory changesthat will enable administration ofvaccines in community pharmacies”. The Australian Pharmacy LiaisonForum, which includes the Guild,PSA, APESMA, SHPA, AACP, NAPSA,Australian Pharmacy Council, PDL,Council of Pharmacy Schools andthe Australian College of Pharmacy,met earlier this month and agreedthat improved accessibility ofimmunisation is a key way of liftingpublic health outcomes in Australia. “By working as part of theprimary health care team,pharmacists already offer a rangeof professional pharmacy servicesthat improve the health outcomesof consumers. “The provision of immunisationservices is a logical extension ofthese professional services,” the

APLF said in a communique. The meeting also included apresentation from former Societyof Hospital Pharmacists Australiaceo Yvonne Allinson, who’s now theNational eHealth TransitionAuthority (NeHTA) Clinical Lead. Allinson gave an overview ofongoing eHealth initiatives such asthe Personally Controlled eHealthRecord, and the APLF encouragedpharmacists to participate in thePCEHR and Electronic MedicationManagement programs. Other agenda items included theHealth Professionals PrescribingPathway Project being undertakenby NPS Australia, which isestablishing a framework ofprescribing competencies to ensurethe consistency of prescribingpractice across all healthprofessions.

Mental health action MINISTER for MentalHealth andAgeing, Mark Butler, hasannounced the extension of aSouth Australian mental healthcrisis response service to a 24 houroperation. The move, in cooperation withthe SA government, will also seethe creation of a walk-in mentalhealth clinic in Salisbury. Butler said the Assessment andCrisis Intervention Service (ACIS),which has received $9.5m over fiveyears, will help ease pressure onhospital emergency departments.

Pineapple for burns THE European Medicines Agencyhas recommended a new pineappleenzyme-based debriding agent foruse in treatment of severe burns. NexoBrid is the first medicaltreatment for the removal of eschar(dried-out, thick, leathery, blacknecrotic tissue) from bad burnwounds, and is an alternative tosurgical intervention. The product, which wasdesignated an orphan medicine in2002, consists of a mixture ofenzymes extracted from the stemof the pineapple plant, enriched inbromelain, and is to be appliedtopically to a clean burn wound.

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