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Welcome to the NPS home for health professionals Welcome to the NPS home for health professionals

Click here to learn more about the Finding Evidence - Recognising Hype program

Browse our evidence-based publications, other information and tools on best practice, or participate in our educational activities such as case studies, clinical audits and pharmacy practice reviews to improve Quality Use of Medicines in practice.

Latest therapeutic program

Opioid therapy in chronic pain: use a planned approach

Find out more on our Drug and therapeutic topics page

Resources

Activities

Optimal use of opioid-containing analgesics in chronic pain

The latest Pharmacy Practice Review will be available from 24 May 2010. This activity will assist you to:

  • Promote consultations about chronic pain management in your pharmacy.
  • Engage patients in a conversation to help improve their pain management and minimise adverse effects of treatment.
  • Establish rapport with your patients to discuss whether their expectations of pain management are realistic and achievable.
  • Self-assess your abilities and practice against standards and competencies relevant to your role.
  • Determine your training/development needs.

Accredited by the:

  • Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) as a self audit activity for 8 points. Accreditation number: CX100016A.
  • Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia (SHPA) CPD Program for 8 hours of content as Group-2 activity for inclusion in an individual phamacist's CPD plan.
Also recognised by the Australian Association of Consultant Pharmacy (AACP) for 8 points. 		Pharmacy practice review

Management of stable COPD and smoking cessation

The latest clinical audit for GPs on the management of stable COPD and smoking cessation will be available from May 2010.

This clinical audit will assist you to:

  • review your management of patients with COPD, including the use of spirometry
  • review use of short-acting beta2 agonists, long-acting beta2 agonists and inhaled corticosteroids in COPD
  • provide smoking cessation assistance according to a patient’s readiness to quit and level of nicotine dependence
  • assess inhaler technique, and adherence to medicines and management plan.
    .

Recognised for RACGP (Category 1) and ACRRM (extended skills) points and the Quality Prescribing Initiative cycle (May 2010 to April  2011).

 COPD Clinical audit logo

 

Complete your Clinical e-Audit  for the 2011-12 QPI cycle

A CD featuring two Clinical e-Audits is available to GPs and GP Registrars:

Review of Proton Pump Inhibitor (PPI) prescribing; review management of patients using PPIs, identify and implement a step-down strategy for suitable patients and review concurrent use of drugs that may induce or exacerbate dyspepsia/ulceration.

Optimising management of type 2 diabetes; review drug therapy and achieve target levels in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Why complete a Clinical e-Audit?

  • Keep up to date with a clear summary of current guideline recommendations
  • Reflect on immediate individualised feedback for each patient
  • Compare practice with peers
  • Review improvements in current practice
  • Recognised for the current Quality Prescribing Initiative cycle (ending 30 April 2010)
  • Earn CPD points: RACGP QA&CPD Program 40 points (Category 1) and ACRRM PD Program 30 points (extended skills)
 E-Audit logo

Therapeutic choices for menopausal symptoms

NPS is offering health professionals the opportunity to participate in a multifaceted therapeutic program and earn continuing professional development points. General practices may also be eligible for financial incentives under the Quality Prescribing Initiative (QPI) of the Practice Incentives Program (PIP).

As new evidence has emerged over the last decade, there has been debate about the safest and most effective treatment options for managing the symptoms of menopause. NPS says the decision about which treatments to use should be made jointly between the health professional and the patient.

The program includes:

  • Educational visits and peer group discussion based on case scenarios
  • Case studies for health professionals to refine decision making skills
  • Prescribing feedback for GPs
  • NPS News (64) - Therapeutic choices for menopausal symptoms
  • Case study (59) - Optimising quality of life during menopause
  • Prescribing Practice Review (47) - Therapeutic choices for menopausal symptoms.
We reinforce the following:
  • Discuss a woman’s goals and concerns about menopause and her treatment preferences
  • Oestrogen with or without progestogen is the most effective treatment for women with menopausal symptoms
  • Consider potential benefits and harms and assess cardiovascular risk
  • Tailor the dose and duration of therapy according to individual symptoms and existing risks
  • Inform women about the limited efficacy and safety data on complementary
  • and alternative medicines

Book NOW and earn points - contact your NPS facilitator via your local division of general practice.


Drugs and therapeutic topics

Browse our information for the therapeutic areas below, including articles from our publications, professional education activities, and practice tools.

View full topic list

Do a case study

Refine your clinical decision-making skills by doing our free case studies and receive a feedback report with expert commentary and aggregated responses of other participants.

Aged care facilities: evaluating drug use
in managing insomnia

Completing our Drug Use Evaluation (DUE) activity will help aged care facilities comply with standards and guidelines in the use of hypnotic medicines in managing insomnia.

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