School of Public Health, Faculty of Health and Medical Science, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
SAHMRI Women and Kids, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
Contraception. 2024 Sep;137:110480. doi: 10.1016/j.contraception.2024.110480. Epub 2024 May 4.
To assess the availability of over-the-counter emergency contraceptive pills in the Australian community pharmacy setting.
Representative national telephone survey.
Only 70% of the 233 pharmacies surveyed stocked ulipristal acetate (UPA) emergency contraceptive pills, compared to levonorgestrel, which was stocked in 98%. When ulipristal acetate was stocked, it was on average $13 more expensive.
Despite being recommended as the first-line oral emergency contraceptive, UPA is less likely to be available, and when available, it is likely to be more expensive. These findings support anecdotal reports UPA is challenging to access and less commonly used.
Strategies are urgently required to improve equitable access to all methods of oral emergency contraception within the Australian community pharmacy setting and ensure pharmacists are aware of key differences between the available methods. This will ensure that they are prepared to facilitate shared decision making based on the individual needs of each woman.
评估澳大利亚社区药房中非处方紧急避孕药的供应情况。
具有代表性的全国性电话调查。
在所调查的 233 家药房中，只有 70%的药房储备了乌利司他紧急避孕药（UPA），而左炔诺孕酮的储备率为 98%。当储备 UPA 时，其平均价格比左炔诺孕酮高出 13 澳元。
尽管乌利司他被推荐为一线口服紧急避孕药，但它的供应情况不太可能得到满足，而且即使有供应，其价格也可能更高。这些发现支持了有关乌利司他难以获得且使用频率较低的传闻报道。
迫切需要在澳大利亚社区药房环境中制定策略，以改善所有人获得口服紧急避孕药的公平性，并确保药剂师了解可用方法之间的关键差异。这将确保他们能够根据每位女性的个体需求，做好共同决策的准备。
