Pharmacist Lucy Walker and Dr Helen Wiltshire welcome pharmacy prescribed contraceptives

Hormonal contraceptives will soon be available to women through local pharmacies, in a move by the state government and welcomed by regional health professionals.

Sixty-three years after the first pill was introduced in Australia and initially available only to married women, pharmacists like for Goondiwindi Terry White Chemmart owner Lucy Walker will soon be able to prescribe a number of contraceptives directly to women aged 16 and above.

Sixty-three years after the first pill was introduced in Australia and initially available only to married women, pharmacists like Goondiwindi Terry White Chemmart owner Lucy Walker will soon be able to prescribe a number of contraceptives directly to women aged 16 and above.

“It’s great to be empowered and be able to help women access contraceptives,” she said.

The service would provide women with more options to contraceptives, but also in a timely manner, as GP clinics were limited in opening hours and locations, particularly in regional areas, she said.

A senate report on reproductive health in 2023 found two in three Australian women use some form of contraception, and 83 per cent of women have used it at some point in their lives.

For the past 15 years, Ms Walker has assisted many women with emergency contraceptives, such as the morning-after pill, and said she and her six other pharmacists were looking forward to gaining the accreditation to prescribe hormonal contraceptives.

The initiative, based on a pilot program in north Queensland, will be rolled out across the state and included an accredited training program for pharmacists, an announcement from the state government on Thursday said.

Sixty-three years after the first pill was introduced in Australia and initially available only to married women, pharmacists like for Goondiwindi Terry White Chemmart owner Lucy Walker will soon be able to prescribe a number of contraceptives directly to women aged 16 and above.

From July 2024 women and teens from the age of 16 will be able to access forms of the combined oral contraceptive pill, progesterone-only pills, the depot injection, and the contraceptive vaginal ring from pharmacists with the accreditation.

Ms Walker described this as “empowering”, with women being able to “look after their own healthcare”.

She stressed the importance of pharmacists collaborating with GPs and other health professionals around sexual and reproductive health.

Rockhampton’s True Relationships senior medical officer Dr Helen Wiltshire said the organisation was pleased to hear the announcement and hoped this would mean continuity of care to regards to sexual health.

True Relationships has a strong presence in regional areas, and runs pop-up outreach clinics in 17 locations across Queensland with a focus on improving sexual and reproductive health along with promoting safe and respectful relationships.

Access to contraceptives to young girls was a way of reducing the risk of abortions and preventing unwanted pregnancies, Dr Wiltshire said.

“Queensland really has variable access to early abortion services, some places have good access, other places have limited access,” she said.

Dr Wiltshire also highlighted the importance of getting young people to think about their health in a holistic manner.

She said this was beyond contraception and included their general safety, exposure to sexually transmitted infections and awareness of building respectful relationships.

“I hope this means for places with limited medical services they can work in collaboration between the community pharmacy and medical services so that people can access the care they need at the time they need,” she said.