Could your local pharmacy soon be the first stop for treatment of minor health issues?

In an effort to address the shortage of GPs in New South Wales, pharmacists may soon offer treatment for minor health conditions.

Under proposed changes that could come into force in NSW in 2026, ailments such as ear infections, nausea, minor wounds, vomiting, and mild acute musculoskeletal pain could all be addressed by your local chemist.

The move is aimed at helping to deal with a shortage of GPs in NSW, part of a national problem forecast to record a shortfall of 1,900 GPs across Australia by 2028.

NSW Health Minister Ryan Park said the plan aimed to alleviate pressure on GPs, given people were “often waiting days or even weeks before they can find an appointment”.

“By empowering pharmacists to undertake consultations on more conditions, we can relieve the pressure on GPs and end the wait times,” he said in a statement.

“People should be able to access treatment as and when they need it, and the expansion of this important initiative will improve access to care.”

Pharmacy Guild of Australia NSW branch president David Heffernan supported the proposals, stating that the change would mean patients were not forced to go to hospital “for a simple ear infection, just because their GP can’t see them”.

While both Ryan and Heffernan support the proposal, RACGP NSW Chair Dr Rebekah Hoffman slammed the move, claiming it increased the risk of misdiagnosis and incorrect treatment being administered to patients.

“This is politically driven policy, and it has potentially devastating consequences for people across New South Wales, due to the risks of incorrect treatment and serious illnesses being missed,” she said.

“What Health Minister Ryan Park clearly doesn’t understand is patients come in with symptoms, not a diagnosis. Diagnosis is complex and requires years of training – GPs train for over 10 years. You can’t squeeze this training into a short course for pharmacists and expect good health outcomes.

“If you get a diagnosis wrong, the consequences can be devastating. There are significant risks of serious and even life-threatening illnesses being missed with the conditions the NSW Government wants to allow pharmacists to treat.

“For example, nausea can be a symptom of stroke or neurological disorder. Ear infections are also hard to diagnose and the consequences of misdiagnosis in children can be very severe, it can result in abscess or a ruptured eardrum. And someone presenting with reflux and chest pain might not just have reflux, it can mean cardiac problems or heart attack.

“The NSW Government is kidding itself if it thinks this move will do anything to reduce pressure on the state’s overflowing hospitals. If anything, it will have the opposite effect.”

-with AAP.