Separation definitely not a good idea..

My opinion to the editor of NST with regards to 2 articles published on the 8th April 2008.


I refer to the two articles published yesterday with regards to this continuing saga over the dispensing rights of doctors and pharmacists, and I would like to say my piece.

It is quite obvious that all the writers so far have a vested interest either directly or indirectly in who should get the final dispensing rights. One just have to read between the lines of these purported support for or against any such decisions to be made in the future to understand the author's intention. Perhaps, we all should really go out there and see for ourselves what is actually occurring in the field before drawing any conclusion or making any decision that will have a serious impact and repercussions on our current health-care system. Let us not blindly follow another country's practice just because we felt it suited us at that particular moment in time and make a sweeping statement to make it sound as though it would be just as suitable here in our kind of environment. As a true consumer, I have yet to be convinced or been brought to understand why a pharmacist can do a better job in the area of dispensing medications. Likewise, I also feel that there are also doctors out there who leaves a lot to be desired in terms of patient welfare and care provided. And yet again, I have come across both pharmacists and doctors who really do take their time to explain the finer details of any illness that I might have, in the kind of layman's language that I can understand and in a way that I cannot help but be convincingly involved also in my own health-care.

And my reasons for stating the above is that if one were to just walk into a lot of pharmacy outlets at this moment in time, there is really no stopping one from getting any medications, with or without any prescription, and I seriously doubt any further pertinent advice that can be given on my medications as against what my doctor can tell me. Again here, I would definitely not make a sweeping statement as I know there are also those out there who are very professional and ethical in their pharmaceutical practice and do ask for proper prescriptions for any controlled medications and take the trouble to explain in great detail about any medications given. The only reason the pharmacists are asking for a legal right to this practice is because most people would really still prefer to get their medications filled at one place, hence the clinic and therefore, the pharmacists are not getting their so called "rightful" share of the business and if the authorities were to make a law out of this, the public would have no choice but to buy their medicines from the pharmacists. Simple really.

And simplicity here would also mean that if I have to send my car for servicing and changing of the tyres and if the particular shop can do both extremely well, to my liking and charges reasonably, then common-sense would dictate that I do all those at that shop. But if for some reason, that workshop is only good for servicing and is so good that I would still prefer them servicing my car but because their skills at balancing or aligning the tyres are not that great, perhaps then I would go through the trouble of getting that done elsewhere. Simple isn't it?

So, let us all just call a spade, a spade, and not try to "convince" people otherwise. We are a lot smarter nowadays. Let me, as a consumer, decide for myself who I want to get my medicines from. I believe we are all smart enough to go where the best service is provided and to know who we should seek advice from, whether I need a total holistic understanding of my medical condition or is it just pertaining to more information on a regular medication that I am on. If a clinic or a pharmacy outlet is not getting the kind of visits they are expecting, then I believe they would have to really reassess their current patient-care skills, improve their services, and not just force the public to go to them. After all, I am the one paying the money and I should decide who I want to give my money to. Thank you very much.

This issue is getting so stale. I shall not revisit this topic anymore..unless you force me to.. haha