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Select pharmacies throughout South Western Sydney have volunteered to stock core medicines to support health professionals and carers to provide palliative care for people who wish to die at home or in an aged care setting. This Core Palliative Care Medicines – Building collaborative partnerships with Community Pharmacists project aims to minimise access barriers and facilitate timely prescription, supply and use of medicines for end-of-life symptom management by ensuring alignment across the service system.
Core palliative care medicines
The following list of medicines is available at participating pharmacies throughout South Western Sydney. These are known as the palliative care core palliative care medicines list.
These medicines address the main symptoms seen during the terminal phase of palliative care:
- pain
- delirium
- nausea
- hoarseness
- noisy breathing
The core palliative care medicines list factors in accessibility and affordability - the need for parenteral administration and availability of medicines through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).
| Core Medicine | Indication/(s) for use in the last days of life |
|---|---|
| Clonazepam 1 mg/mL Injection | Anxiety Terminal restlessness |
| Haloperidol 5 mg/mL Injection | Terminal restlessness Nausea |
| Hyoscine butylbromide 20 mg/mL Injection | Noisy breathing |
| Metoclopramide 10 mg/2mL Injection | Nausea |
| Morphine 10 mg/mL Injection | Pain Dyspnoea |
6008 SWSPHN Palliative Care GP Factsheet, Pharmaceutical Society of Australia
GP Factsheet: Supporting end-of-life care in South Western Sydney.
GPs practising in South Western Sydney have a vital role in supporting their patients with palliative care needs. This includes the proactive prescribing (anticipatory prescribing) of medicines needed to manage the expected symptoms associated with dying.
Email HealthPathways@swsphn.com.au to request support if needed.
Participating pharmacies
Use the Google Maps link below to find the pharmacies throughout South Western Sydney who volunteer to make core palliative care medicines available. The map includes pharmacy name, address, contact details and business hours.
Pharmacy Map
FAQs
Why these medicines?
The NSW Clinical Excellence Commission recommends community pharmacies in NSW stock the five injectable medicines on the Core Palliative Care Medicines List for NSW Community Pharmacy. The Agency for Clinical Innovation’s Palliative Care Network Executive Committee, the Pharmacy Guild of Australia (NSW Branch) and the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia also support this recommendation.
Project background can be found on the Clinical Excellence Commission website
NSW Health – community pharmacy factsheet
Pharmaceutical Society of Australia
What is the Core Palliative Care Medicines – Building collaborative partnerships with Community Pharmacists project?
The Core Palliative Care Medicines – Building collaborative partnerships with Community Pharmacists project is a collaboration between South Western Sydney PHN and the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia to make medications on the core palliative care medicines list available through select pharmacies throughout South Western Sydney.
Core palliative care medicines list is a list of NSW Clinical Excellence Commission endorsed medicines for use in end-of-life care. Participating pharmacies are encouraged to keep stock of these medicines. Where clinically appropriate, prescribers should consider prescribing medicines from the list for patients who wish to die at home or in an aged care setting.
The core palliative care medicines list addresses the main symptoms commonly seen during end-of-life – pain, delirium, nausea, dyspnoea, and noisy breathing.
What quantities of each medicine should community pharmacies keep?
There should be enough stock held in a community pharmacy to provide an initial urgent supply to a patient or carer, until more stock arrives in the next scheduled medicine order to fulfil the prescription quantity. For most pharmacies, this would mean keeping a minimum of one box of each medicine on the core medicines list.
Which pharmacies stock core palliative care medicines?
The community pharmacies which have committed to stocking core palliative care medicines are available on the below map.
SWSPHN Pharmacies – Google My Maps
Who do I contact for more information about this project?
For more information about the Core Palliative Care Medicines – Building collaborative partnerships with Community Pharmacists project, email Kate Noble – Integration and Priority Populations Coordinator
South Western Sydney PHN commissioned Pharmaceutical Society of Australia to deliver the Core Palliative Care Medicines – Building collaborative partnerships with Community Pharmacists project.
Pharmaceutical Society of Australia
Visit our palliative care web page for more information and resources to assist health professionals. If you are a community member seeking guidance on palliative care medications, please speak to your GP or care provider.
Palliative care support for GPs and Allied Health | South Western Sydney PHN (swsphn.com.au)