Regional helpers

Strong pharmacies – strong health

(Bild: Martin Hörmandinger)

If domestic healthcare is a single-family home, public pharmacies are the necessary foundation. As part of the healthcare reform, the goal of "digital before outpatient before inpatient" was formulated. This can only be achieved if politicians and the social insurance system make more comprehensive and targeted use of the strengths of the 1,450 pharmacies in Austria.

Now, after the National Council elections, important decisions must be made in the healthcare system. The pharmacists have formulated measures, proposals and ideas, for example:

Patient flows must be managed better than before. Pharmacies, as often one of the first points of contact for people, can take on an additional control function in the system together with the (telemedical) services of the health hotline 1450. Pharmacies thus become "1450 pilots", so to speak.

Launch prevention offensive: Prevention & health promotion
The expansion of preventive measures and the promotion of a healthy lifestyle reduce treatment costs in the long term and increase quality of life. The 7,000 pharmacists play a central role in this thanks to their trusting relationship with the population. They have around 600,000 patient contacts in pharmacies every day, many of whom come without prior medical consultation and without a doctor's prescription. What the population needs now:

• An Austria-wide strategy for preventive healthcare with clear responsibilities
• Ensuring health promotion - regardless of place of residence and income
• Reimbursement of preventive services provided in pharmacies
• Promotion of digital technologies and considered linking of individual, digital health data

Even more services in pharmacies
Modern health tests, for example for cardiovascular and infectious diseases, as well as screenings for early detection of diabetes, are being expanded in pharmacies. Pharmaceutical services such as the care of the chronically ill and the optimization of drug therapy (medication analysis) must be included in the upcoming government programme, as must a range of vaccination services that will help to increase the vaccination rate at home. The legal basis for vaccination by pharmacists must be created.

Optimization in the hospital sector 
Pharmacists also care for patients in hospitals. In order to be able to do this even better, the entire medication process should be accompanied by hospital pharmacists in the future and also be completely digitized.

It would also be important to draw up an Austria-wide action plan to "improve drug therapy safety in hospitals", with the following parties involved: Federal government, federal states, social insurance, hospital operators.