Hallett Cove is set to be the latest Adelaide suburb to have a 24-hour pharmacy.
To be located in the Hallett Cove Pavilion Shopping Centre on Lonsdale Rd, TerryWhite Chemmart is expected to open round-the-clock by August, providing 24-hour access to medicines and health care seven days a week, including public holidays.
The pharmacy will join a network of 24-hour facilities, with chemists in Salisbury Plain, Clovelly Park and Norwood now operating day and night.
The move comes as $2.2 million is allocated in this week’s State Budget to support the State Government’s initiative to expand pharmacists’ scope of practice.
From next year, pharmacists who have completed additional post-graduate education will be able to assess, manage and treat a broader range of conditions, including skin conditions, ear infections, wound management, nausea and vomiting, reflux, musculoskeletal pain, and rhinitis.
Since they began just over a year ago, more than 270,000 people have visited the three existing 24/7 pharmacies during their extended hours, dispensing more than 105,000 scripts and taking more than 10,000 phone calls from people seeking medical advice.
All locations have a pharmacist on site 24-hours-a-day, providing walk-in access to health advice, medicines and professional pharmacy services when most other health services are unavailable.
Other after-hours services provided by the pharmacies include first aid and minor burns management, UTI assessment/treatment, emergency contraception, gastric conditions, and respiratory medicine supply and advice.
The extension of operating hours at the four pharmacies is funded by the State Government to help expand healthcare options for the community, with survey feedback indicating that about 20 per cent of respondents would have visited an emergency department if the 24/7 pharmacy was not available.
The funding in this year’s budget to expand pharmacists’ scope of practice builds on reforms introduced last year enabling South Australian women to access advice and, where appropriate, treatment with medication from a trained pharmacist for an uncomplicated urinary tract infection and a resupply of the oral contraceptive pill.
Already, 340 pharmacies in SA have provided a UTI service and 183 pharmacies have assisted with resupplying the oral contraceptive pill.
TerryWhite Chemmart Hallett Cove Proprietor Robert Pietrantuono said the service would be a significant benefit to the loyal communities of Hallett Cove, Sheidow Park, Trott Park, and surrounding suburbs.
"People don’t just get sick during business hours, and sometimes, all it takes is the right advice or medicine to make it through the night," Mr Pietrantuono said.
"We are proud to now be part of the solution, ensuring that southern Adelaide residents have access to expert pharmacy care – 24 hours a day."
