Mental health is an incredibly important part of our overall health and wellbeing. 

Pharmacy 777 attended the 2024 WA Mental Health Conference recently, which observed the theme of ‘Solutions in Motion’, looking at a positive catalyst for change.

The Conference which is organised by Western Australian Association for Mental Health (WAAMH) aims to develop, support and strengthen WA’s mental health sector and improve engagement and services offered to consumers and the wider community.

The team at Pharmacy 777 were able to have some extremely important conversations about the role that Pharmacists can play in supporting patients with mental health. 

The Conference provided collaborative opportunities for people with lived experience, clinical staff and non-clinical mental health workers, offering the chance to share resources, perspectives and best practices.

Pharmacy 777 Pharmacist Negar Almassi said it was an important conversation to be having in 2024.

“As the most accessible health care professionals in the community, it is vital that Pharmacists are a key part of conversations around mental health and are included in a patient’s health care team,” Negar said.

“A large portion of patients with mental health issues will be taking prescribed medications. Pharmacists are best placed to have regular conversations with these patients and their carers about the medicines, their ideal treatment outcomes, potential side effects, and the need to address their overall health for best results. Many patients would potentially need changes to their doses or medication types, until they find the right regimen that works best for them. It is crucial that they have ongoing conversations and continuity of care between their prescriber and pharmacist while finding the approach that is right for them.”

However, an often-overlooked aspect of mental health care is the risk of unintentional harm from medications. For instance, opioid overdoses can occur in patients prescribed pain medications, particularly those dealing with comorbid conditions like anxiety, depression, or chronic pain.

Pharmacy 777 has been working with the community, patients and carers to educate them about unintentional overdoses. Naloxone is a medication that is freely available at all Pharmacy 777 pharmacies and can rapidly reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. 

It is easy to administer, either as a nasal spray or intramuscular injection.  

Find out more about the Take Home Naloxone Program.