Professor Lisa Nissen, whose controversial work opened the door for pharmacy UTI prescribing, is leading the expert research team behind the Federal Government’s Scope of Practice Review.

The review is already sounding alarm bells among medical groups, with its recent issues paper suggesting that nurses and pharmacists should receive GP-level Medicare rebates for performing similar work, as well as suggesting Medicare should fund allied health referrals direct to specialists, bypassing GPs.

For the review, the Federal Government has contracted researchers at the University of Queensland’s health workforce optimisation team, led by Professor Nissen, who co-wrote the outcomes report for the Queensland Government’s pharmacy UTI pilot.

The federal Department of Health and Aged Care told AusDoc last week it had struck a $1.25 million contract, starting on 3 November 2023, with University of Queensland researchers.