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Pharmacy Act, 1974 (Act No. 53 of 1974)

Board Notice

2018 Competency Standards for Pharmacists in South Africa

Domain 1: Public Health

 

INTRODUCTION

 

Domain 1 covers public health and includes competencies that are required in both the public and private healthcare sectors to promote health and wellness through the provision of healthcare information and education to the public and other members of the healthcare team.

 

The provision of medicines and healthcare information and education forms an integral part of the scope of practice of a pharmacist. The availability of specialised pharmaceutical knowledge at all levels of care, including primary healthcare (PHC), is an important component for the delivery of effective and efficient pharmaceutical services.

 

The domain covers competencies that are required to promote health, promote and monitor adherence and apply pharmacoeconomic principles.

 

The public health domain competencies are:

 

1.1 Promotion of health and wellness
1.2 Medicines information
1.3 Professional and health advocacy
1.4 Pharmacoeconomics
1.5 Epidemics and disaster management
1.6 Primary healthcare

 

DOMAIN 1: PUBLIC HEALTH

 

Behavioural Statements

Competencies

Item No.

Entry Level into Practice

Intermediate Practice

Advanced Practice

1.1

Promotion of health and wellness

1.1.1

1.1.1.1

Advise on health promotion, disease prevention and control, and healthy lifestyles.

1.1.1.2

Assess healthcare needs of communities taking into account the cultural and social context and public health priorities in South Africa.

1.1.1.3

Collaborate with other healthcare professionals in the planning, development and implementation of evidence-based public health campaigns.

1.1.2

1.1.2.1

Participate in public health campaigns.

1.1.2.2

Assist and encourage communities to make use of available health resources.

1.1.2.3

Incorporate national health and medicines policy and guidelines into organisational practices.

1.2

Medicines information

1.2.1

1.2.1.1

Participate in pharmaceutical

and therapeutics committees.

1.2.1.2

Play an advisory role in pharmaceutical and therapeutics committees.

1.2.1.3

Play a leading role in pharmaceutical and therapeutics committees.

1.2.2

1.2.2.1

Participate in antimicrobial

stewardship.

1.2.2.2

Play an advisory role in antimicrobial stewardship

1.2.2.3

Play a leading role in an antimicrobial stewardship team.

1.2.3

1.2.3.1

Apply principles of palliative care for management of patients with life-limiting conditions.

1.2.3.2

Recognise and manage the changing pharmacological and pharmaceutical care needs of patients with life-limiting conditions.

1.2.3.3

Develop and review policies to support the application of the palliative care approach in medicine management.

1.2.4

1.2.4.1

Identify and use medicine information centres and relevant evidence-based sources of information for medicines.

1.2.4.2

Identify and use medicine information centres and relevant evidence-based sources of information for medicines.

1.2.4.3

Interpret and use relevant evidence-based sources when consulting on advanced medicine information queries.

1.3

Professional and  health advocacy

1.3.1

1.3.1.1

Participate as a pharmacist within a healthcare team.

1.3.1.2

Promote the role of the pharmacist within healthcare teams.

1.3.1.3

Act as a patient advocate to ensure that pharmaceutical care is optimised.

1.3.2

1.3.2.1

Apply health policy and procedures in practice.

1.3.2.2

Participate in the implementation of health policy.

1.3.2.3

Contribute to the development and review of health policy.

1.4

Pharmaco-economics

1.4.1

1.4.1.1

Monitor and encourage

adherence to formularies and

guidelines.

1.4.1.2

Report on adherence to formularies.

1.4.1.3

Evaluate reports and develop interventions to improve formularies and guidelines.

1.4.2

1.4.2.1

Apply developed interventions to ensure cost-effective use of medicines.

1.4.2.2

Collate reliable information and

conduct analysis to ensure costeffective use of medicines.

1.4.2.3

Develop interventions to improve cost-effective use of medicines.

1.4.3

1.4.3.1

Participate in collecting pharmaceutical data to determine if pharmaceutical use is in accordance with the burden of disease.

1.4.3.2

Compile and analyse reports such as Defined Daily Doses (DDDs) and ABC analysis to determine if pharmaceutical use is in accordance with burden of disease.

 

1.4.3.3

Develop reporting systems to determine whether pharmaceutical services are in accordance with the burden of disease.

1.5

Epidemics and disaster management

1.5.1

1.5.1.1

Assist in the implementation of the outbreak/disaster plan.

1.5.1.2

Participate as a member of a disease outbreak/disaster response team.

1.5.1.3

Implement, monitor and evaluate the roll out of an outbreak/disaster pharmaceutical response plan.

1.5.2

1.5.2.1

Identify disease trends in your pharmacy practice setting (patient based).

1.5.2.2

Identify and report disease trends in the community to the relevant authority.

1.5.2.3

Identify and report the incidence and prevalence of disease in the population with detection of source and cause of infectious diseases.

1.5.3

1.5.3.1

Identify threats for outbreak/disaster in your pharmacy practice setting (patient based).

1.5.3.2

Identify threats for outbreak of disease/disasters in the community.

1.5.3.3

Identify possible threats for outbreak of disease/disasters in the population.

1.5.4

 

1.5.4.1

Assist in managing outbreaks/disasters.

1.5.4.2

Implement activities aimed at managing outbreaks/disasters.

1.5.4.3

Plan actions and prepare for possible outbreaks/disasters.

1.6

Primary healthcare

1.6.1

1.6.1.1

Engage in lifestyle changes, in a multidisciplinary setting, that may prevent communicable and non-communicable diseases and/or improve therapeutic outcomes.

1.6.1.2

Work in a multidisciplinary healthcare team to optimise therapeutic outcomes.

1.6.1.3

Play a leading role in a multidisciplinary healthcare team to optimise therapeutic outcomes.

1.6.2

1.6.2.1

Participate in screening and disease prevention programmes and campaigns.

1.6.2.2

Advocate for lifestyle changes that may prevent communicable and non-communicable diseases and/or improve the outcomes of medicinal therapy.

1.6.2.3

Advocate for lifestyle changes that may prevent communicable and non-communicable diseases and/or improve the outcomes of medicinal therapy.

1.6.3

1.6.3.1

Advise patients on self-care and adherence to treatment regimens.

1.6.3.2

Implement strategies to encourage patients to take responsibility for their own health and adherence to treatment guidelines.

1.6.3.3

Develop strategies to encourage patients to take responsibility for their own health and adherence to

treatment guidelines.