Standard of practice in women's and newborn health for pharmacy services

In Australia, everyone shares a fundamental right to safe and high-quality health care. This is defined in the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights,1 which all healthcare systems must strive to uphold. The Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights summarises the basic rights of patients and consumers when accessing healthcare services including access, safety, respect, partnership, information, privacy and the right give feedback.1 The provision of pharmacy services must encompass the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights1 to deliver effective, efficient, timely, and equitable person-centred care.

This Standard references and relies upon the Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia (SHPA) Standards of practice for clinical pharmacy services2 as the foremost standard. This Standard may overlap with others; depending on the area of specialty practice it may be advisable to refer to additional Standards of Practice, for example, the Standard of practice in paediatrics and neonatology for pharmacy services (in development).

The use of the word ‘specialisation’ in this Standard is in line with the National Competency Standards Framework for Pharmacists in Australia where ‘specialisation’ refers to the scope of practice rather than the level of performance.3 ‘Specialisation’ in and of itself does not confer additional expertise.

The National Competency Standards Framework for Pharmacists in Australia3 complements the underpinnings of the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights1 across five domains of competency for the pharmacy profession, namely: (1) professionalism and ethics, (2) communication and collaboration, (3) medicines management and patient care, (4) leadership and management, and (5) education and research.

This Standard is for professional practice and is not prepared or endorsed by Standards Australia. It is not legally binding.