The University of Newcastle has signed a deal to run and evaluate the NSW Government’s pharmacy prescribing experiment, Australian Doctor has been told.

Last year, state Premier Dominic Perrottet announced plans for a trial of pharmacists diagnosing and treating UTIs, followed by a pilot of pharmacists prescribing more broadly for skin ailments, ear infections and contraception. 

He originally said the trial would start in February 2023, although the NSW Health website now says the trial is anticipated to commence in the first quarter. 

It put out a tender, with up to $3 million in funding up for grabs, for “a clinical trial framework to capture robust outcome data to inform the future scope and role of community pharmacists in the management of common acute conditions”.