Page 29 - Retail Pharmacy November/Decemeber 2020

contribution and collaboration. Stay safe and well.” – Anish Patel, General Manager ANZ, GSK Consumer Healthcare. “Now and for the foreseeable future, all areas of healthcare are dealing with the impacts of Covid-19. Again, I’d like to express my sincere thanks to everyone in the pharmaceutical supply chain for getting on with the job in the face of significantly increased demand and community anxiety. In particular, I’d like to call out the healthcare workers, including pharmacists, who are all at the frontline dealing with often worried and sometimes sick patients. They have their own families to look after and are working hard to ensure their own staff remain safe and supported.” – Mark Hooper, CEO, Sigma Healthcare. “Pfizer Australia is extremely grateful to all frontline pharmacists and healthcare professionals who are responding to the Covid-19 pandemic to ensure the health and safety of Australians. We know it’s a very difficult time for pharmacists, their families and staff, and we’re thankful for their commitment to serving our community.” – Anne Harris, Managing Director, Pfizer Australia and New Zealand. Other stories making highlights at this time • Consumer Healthcare Products Australia announced the launch of AdCheck, a new advertising advisory service, from 1 July, as TGA mandatory pre-approvals of consumer advertising for therapeutic goods ended. • The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) launched a nationwide campaign, ‘Expert advice matters’, urging people not to neglect their health concerns, which had been a concerning trend since the pandemic began. • The 2020 National Immunisation Program was expanded to include free immunisation against influenza for Australian children aged six months to five years. • Pfizer and German biotech firm BioNTech received regulatory approval from German authority Paul-Ehrlich- Institut to begin their first human clinical trial of four Covid-19 vaccine candidates from a program named BNT162. • Hydroxychloroquine, a medicine approved in Australia to treat malaria as well as some autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, started to receive much media attention about its potential use for treating Covid-19. ANNUAL REPORT 27 March was an especially turbulent month for Australia, as the Covid-19 pandemic shook already fragile consumer and business confidence, resulting in unprecedented new social norms and manifesting in a health and economic crisis of historic magnitude... IRI’s shopper panel, derived from more than 13,000 households recording their purchases across channels, revealed the average Australian household spent an additional $17 in OTC pharmacy versus the same four-week period last year. The increase in spending was underpinned by a 54 per cent increase in store visits (or transactions) across the pharmacy channel, compared with a 27 per cent uplift in grocery (four weeks to 29 March). Getting close to customers at this unprecedented time, it was felt, would allow industry stakeholders optimally to respond to genuinely new and evolving consumer behaviours during the Covid-19 outbreak and beyond. IRI forecast that, as we approached a profound recessionary shock, successful companies would fight their instincts to drop prices. Instead, they would apply a range of growth strategies – including optimising their brand portfolio and product assortment, and refining their value proposition to emphasise quality, convenience, and differentiation. Other stories making highlights at this time Arthritis Australia, in partnership with the Australian Rheumatology Association, launched a free online rheumatoid arthritis patient-support website. The MyRA site provided individually tailored information designed to help people seize control and become active participants in their journey with the disease. “A heartfelt thank you for the commitment and professionalism of pharmacy staff across Australia. Your dedication in being at the frontline in providing medicines and treatments is vital in protecting public health. Healthcare heroes all of you.” – Mark Sargent, General Manager Consumer Health, Bayer Australia and New Zealand. JUNE “I’m enormously proud of both the TWC network and the industry in demonstrating the critical role pharmacy plays in the broader healthcare system and supporting communities through what might be the toughest period in our lifetime.” – Duncan Phillips, CEO, TerryWhite Chemmart. “On behalf of the team at Care Pharmaceuticals, I’d like to acknowledge and thank all pharmacy staff for their dedication in supporting Australians during this challenging time. They’re doing a wonderful job ensuring the continued supply of medications, OTC products and other important pharmacy items along with providing the advice and support required by the community in these unprecedented times.” – Jonathan Biddle, Vice President Asia/Pacific Prestige Consumer Healthcare and General Manager, Care Pharmaceuticals. PHARMACY SALES BOOM, BUT WHAT NEXT? Australian retail pharmacy scan sales exceeded $800 million in the four weeks to 22 March (up 26 per cent versus the same period in 2019) as Covid-19- induced anxieties drove a surge in store traffic, transactions and stockpiling of self-care products. • Lung Foundation Australia launched the 2020 issue of the COPD-X Concise Guide, a clinical resource providing practical, evidence-based recommendations for healthcare professionals in the diagnosis and management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). • Health Minister Greg Hunt announced an extra $48.1 million allocated for the federal government’s Covid-19 mental health plan, with $7.3 million to be used for research and real-time data, $29.5 million for outreach to vulnerable communities and $11.3 million for communication and other outreach programs. TO PAGE 28 • The National Centre for Education and Training on Addiction warned of increased health risks if people • resorted to using more drugs and alcohol to cope with stress, anxiety and boredom during self-isolation. RETAIL PHARMACY • NOV/DEC 2020