Here you will find all our clinical education resources from articles to recorded webinars, all supporting equitable access to funded medicines.
Biological medicines are already used in Aotearoa New Zealand and with more being developed internationally, it’s important that health professionals feel comfortable prescribing, dispensing, and supporting patients to use them.
We’ve highlighted five key aspects of these medicines in an article and a series of short animated videos. After completing each section, you can take a short quiz to test your learning.
Last year, cilazapril with hydrochlorothiazide was discontinued, and now cilazapril alone is no longer funded for new patients. Consultant cardiologist Chris Ellis discusses what to do when patients with hypertension run out of their supply of these medications
Prescribers wanting to block angiotensin II effects can consider the remaining funded ACE inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers. ACE inhibitors and ARBs are similarly effective for hypertension, chronic renal disease and diabetic nephropathy, but ARBs are better tolerated. ACE inhibitors are preferred over ARBs first-line for heart failure and post myocardial infarction.
Read the HAH Bulletin to find out more.
Pharmac has identified five key drivers of medicine access equity in New Zealand. Read on to learn about the drivers and how you can implement them in your place of work.
Dulaglutide, a once-weekly injectable medicine, will soon be available for second-line treatment of type 2 diabetes. As most people with type 2 diabetes will require an injectable therapy at some stage, it is important to build acceptability early in the patient journey.
Cultural competence vs safety – related, but different
A culturally competent practitioner knows about the beliefs and behaviours of patients from different cultures, and has the skill to apply this knowledge to healthcare delivery.
Read the HAH Bulletin to find out more.
Careful writing and editing, and an equity lens, have been instrumental in updating the type 2 diabetes HealthPathways, helping to reduce unnecessary variation in treatment plans and outcomes.
Compliance, adherence, concordance – confused?
Whatever terminology is used, studies show that differences in health literacy, medicines access, attitudes to health and prescriber perceptions, may contribute to sub-optimal use of medicines and poor health outcomes.
Read the HAH Bulletin to find out about strategies to improve medicine access and supply.
Focusing on the experiences of older Māori in primary care, this course comprises four short videos, an independent reflection, downloadable posters and additional resources.
The course is endorsed by RNZCGP and CNA(NZ) and meets PCNZ recertification requirements. Reflection templates are included for you to complete.
This Quality Improvement Activity enables you to review the glycaemic management of your type 2 diabetes patients and identify those who may benefit from initiation or intensification of blood glucose lowering medicines.
Good glycaemic control has a clear benefit on microvascular outcomes and if started early enough, on long-term macrovascular outcomes of coronary artery disease, stroke and peripheral vascular disease.
Diabetes clinical nurse specialist Lisa Sparks discusses the place of empagliflozin and dulaglutide in treatment of type 2 diabetes, with emphasis on potential side effects, sick-day management and improving patient adherence.
Māori attitudes to healthcare today are deeply rooted in New Zealand history. In this article, Deborah Bassett-Clarke discusses some reasons why the current model of pharmacy practice does not always meet the needs of Māori and may actually cause health inequities. Understanding these factors is an important first step to improving outcomes for Māori.