Herpes zoster vaccination in Australia: what's available and who benefits?
Only a third of 70-year-olds received the herpes zoster vaccine in the first 18 months of it being available on the National Immunisation Program. In the latest edition of Australian Prescriber, Professor Kristine Macartney, Director of the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, reviews best practice for using the herpes zoster vaccine in Australia.
The National Medicines Policy 2.0 – fit for a new healthcare landscape
Australia's National Medicines Policy is over 20 years old and needs to be updated. What needs to be considered in an update, and why, is the focus of an article in the latest edition of Australian Prescriber. Professors Andrew McLachlan and Parisa Aslani from the Sydney Pharmacy School at the University of Sydney suggest new directions for the National Medicines Policy 2.0.
Drug interaction resources: mind the gaps
Treatment regimens are becoming increasingly complex with a greater risk of drug interactions. In the latest edition of Australian Prescriber Louise Grannell, Senior medicines information pharmacist at Alfred Health in Melbourne, looks at medicine interaction resources available to doctors. She finds that the information they give varies even for the same drugs and she recommends it is best to check several medicine information resources.
Also in the February issue of Australian Prescriber:
• Managing the overlap of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
• Management of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction
• Book review: Doctor's Bag Companion
New drugs: Patiromer sorbitex calcium for hyperkalaemia, and Tisagenlecleucel for B-cell cancers
