School of Clinical Sciences, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Qld 4000, Australia. Email:
Aust Health Rev. 2020 Jun;44(3):392-398. doi: 10.1071/AH19093.
Objective The aim of this study was to explore whether a relationship exists between the number of disasters a jurisdiction has experienced and the presence of disaster-specific pharmacy legislation. Methods Pharmacy legislation specific to disasters was reviewed for five countries: Australia, Canada, UK, US and New Zealand. A binary logistic regression test using a generalised estimating equation was used to examine the association between the number of disasters experienced by a state, province, territory or country and whether they had disaster-specific pharmacy legislation. Results Three of six models were statistically significant, suggesting that the odds of a jurisdiction having disaster-specific pharmacy legislation increased as the number of disasters increased for the period 2007-17 and 2013-17. There was an association between the everyday emergency supply legislation and the presence of the extended disaster-specific emergency supply legislation . Conclusions It is evident from this review that there are inconsistencies as to the level of assistance pharmacists can provide during times of crisis depending on their jurisdiction and location of practice. It is not a question of whether pharmacists have the skills and capabilities to assist, but rather what legislative barriers are preventing them from being able to contribute further to the disaster healthcare team. What is known about the topic? The contributing factors to disaster-specific pharmacy legislation has not previously been explored in Australia. It can be postulated that the number of disasters experienced by a jurisdiction increases the likelihood of governments introducing disaster-specific pharmacy legislation based on other countries. What does this paper add? This study compared five countries and their pharmacy legislation specific to disasters. It identified that as the number of disasters increases, the odds of a jurisdiction having disaster-specific emergency supply or disaster relocation or mobile pharmacy legislation increases. However, this is likely to be only one of many factors affecting the political decisions of when and what legislation is passed in relation to pharmacists' roles in disasters. What are the implications for practitioners? Pharmacists are well situated in the community to be of assistance during disasters. However, their ability to help patients with chronic disease management or providing necessary vaccinations in disasters is limited by the legislation in their jurisdiction. Releasing pharmacists' full potential in disasters could alleviate the burden of low-acuity patients on other healthcare services. This could subsequently free up other healthcare professionals to treat high-acuity patients and emergencies.
本研究旨在探讨一个管辖区经历的灾害数量与是否存在特定于灾害的药学法规之间是否存在关系。
审查了五个国家/地区的特定于灾害的药学法规：澳大利亚、加拿大、英国、美国和新西兰。使用广义估计方程的二元逻辑回归检验来检查一个州、省、地区或国家经历的灾害数量与是否具有特定于灾害的药学法规之间的关联。
六个模型中有三个在统计学上具有显著性，表明在 2007-17 年和 2013-17 年期间，随着灾害数量的增加，管辖区拥有特定于灾害的药学法规的可能性增加。日常紧急供应法规与扩大的特定于灾害的紧急供应法规的存在之间存在关联。
从本综述中可以明显看出，根据其管辖区和实践地点的不同，药剂师在危机时期可以提供的帮助程度存在不一致。问题不在于药剂师是否具备协助的技能和能力，而在于哪些立法障碍阻止他们能够进一步为灾害医疗保健团队做出贡献。
关于这个主题，已知的是什么？在澳大利亚，以前没有探讨过特定于灾害的药学法规的促成因素。可以推测，一个管辖区经历的灾害数量增加了政府根据其他国家引入特定于灾害的药学法规的可能性。
这篇论文增加了什么？本研究比较了五个国家及其特定于灾害的药学法规。它确定，随着灾害数量的增加，管辖区拥有特定于灾害的紧急供应或灾害搬迁或移动药房法规的可能性增加。然而，这可能只是影响政府何时以及通过哪些立法来确定药剂师在灾害中的角色的众多因素之一。
对从业者的影响是什么？药剂师在社区中处于有利地位，可以在灾难中提供帮助。然而，他们在灾难中帮助慢性病患者管理或提供必要疫苗接种的能力受到其管辖范围内法规的限制。在灾难中释放药剂师的全部潜力可以减轻低急症患者对其他医疗服务的负担。这可以随后释放其他医疗保健专业人员来治疗高急症患者和紧急情况。
