Pictured is Parkes Pharmacist Lochie Pettiford who attended the annual Congress of the National Australian Pharmacy Students’ Association. Image credit: Monique Lovick Photography.

Pathways to ownership, hands on experi­ence and lifestyle are just some aspects of regional pharmacy appealing to the next generation of Australian pharmacy profes­sionals.

Industry figures show more than 2,700 full time equivalent (FTE)[1] pharmacists will be needed across Australia in 2025, with more than half (1600) required in com­munity pharmacy.

Life Pharmacy Group (LPG) Pharmacists Lochie Pettiford (Parkes), Uzair Qamar (Dubbo) and Bailey Stratford (ACT) re­cently attended the annual Congress of the National Australian Pharmacy Students’ As­sociation (NAPSA Congress) in Brisbane.

“The students were very engaged and eager to try rural pharmacy, which is always a very good response,” Part owner and Pharmacist in Charge of Parkes Pharmacy, Lochie Pettiford, said.

“Typically, there’s a lot of hesitancy about working outside of major cities, even just for placements, so to have so many people re­ally interested and wanting to come and try rural practice, was exciting.”

More than 250 pharmacy students from across Australia and New Zealand attended NAPSA 2025 at the University of Queens­land. The Congress is an opportunity for pharmacy students and interns to attend education sessions, workshops, network­ing opportunities and the trade exhibition.

“I think students are starting to understand that rural pharmacy is more hands on, they realise rural pharmacy is where you can do more of it and more often,” Lochie said.

“Life Pharmacy Group has a fair few students in regional New South Wales on placement and we’re spreading the word that rural practice is a good offering. Re­gional communities are welcoming and friendly, it’s a great lifestyle and the work aspect is a big driver.”

“It’s always great when people want to come and try [rural practice] in any aspect – whether it’s a placement, internship or long term, the amount of people that were inquir­ing about it is encouraging.” Lochie said.

“You’re one point away from postnatal de­pression” said the family health care nurse scoring the questionnaire I had just com­pleted in her office.

I was on the verge of breaking point. My baby, our third addition, was breastfeeding every 40 minutes overnight and would not take a bottle.

The nurse explained that I was in a zone called postnatal depletion. My hair was fall­ing out, my nails were cracked, my mind was playing tricks on me. I was depleted.

Being pregnant, breastfeeding, caring for other humans, not getting enough sleep had taken its toll.

Fast forward a few weeks as I now sit in front of Laura, my Nutritionist, as she reviews the results of my blood test. The numbers on the page in front of us tell the story of how I feel.

I was a tired Mum, so exhausted that I was surviving on frozen pizza and dino chicken nuggets. I’m sure many of you can relate!With the help of Laura I began to rein­corporate foods into my diet that were rich in the vitamins and minerals my body was lacking and pretty quickly, my nails healed up and grew. My hair stopped clogging the shower drain, and I didn’t feel exhausted every time I woke up in the morning.

We’re thrilled to share that Laura is now offering her Nutrition Consultation services to our community in Parkes or via Tele­health to any location. If you are seeking support to feel your best, reach out to our team to book an appointment with Laura today on 0437 749 746 or learn more at www.kerinhealth.com.au

Australian women in every state and territo­ry can now access treatment for uncompli­cated urinary tract infections at a community pharmacy, without a prescriptionIt follows a decision to empower commu­nity pharmacists to do more for their female patients. UTIs are the second most frequent preventable cause of hospitalisation and on average 1 in 2 women develop a UTI in their lifetime.

Pharmacy Guild of Australia National President Trent Twomey said “Women are busy mothers, carers, bosses who need timely easy-to-access access relief to get on with their day and prevent long-term health complications.”

Professor Twomey said increased access to UTI treatment was part of a larger evolu­tion of women’s health services in commu­nity pharmacies across Australia.

There are more than 6000 community pharmacies across Australia that have the opportunity to provide additional services and prescriptions for everyday health condi­tions.

“The widening of the services provided in community pharmacy is meeting the expec­tation of the modern patient and is reliev­ing the pressure on other parts of the health system.

“Community pharmacists are highly skilled health professionals and we’re ready, willing and able to deliver more for our pa­tients,” Professor Twomey said.

People prone to respiratory conditions like asthma or hayfever are being urged to take extra care ahead of predicted thunderstorm activity across Western NSW Local Health District (WNSWLHD).

Each year from around mid-October to mid-November, asthma and hayfever suf­ferers may be at greater risk of severe symptoms due to high pollen counts, and weather conditions like those are predicted across the region in coming weeks.

Western NSW Local Health District Pub­lic Health Physician, Dr Victor Carey, is urging people with asthma or breathing problems, and those impacted by hayfever in spring, to take extra precautions when thunderstorms are expected.

“People should be alert, not alarmed. It is incredibly important for people to be aware they could be at risk. Airborne pollens are at their highest levels at this time of year,” Dr Carey said.

“Thunderstorms can cause pollen grains to explode and release fine particles which can be inhaled more deeply into the lungs.

Even people who don’t have asthma should take extra precautions during thunderstorm season.

“Anyone with diagnosed asthma should be proactively managing their symptoms.

Carry your asthma medication with you at all times during high-risk periods and make sure your family, school and workplace has a copy of your asthma management plan.

Breathing difficulties can be life threaten­ing. In the event of a breathing emergency dial Triple Zero (000) immediately.

More information can be found on the NSW Health website: https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/environment/factsheets/Pages/thunderstorm-asthma.aspx

BreastScreen Australia is the national breast screening program and actively in­vites women aged 50—74 to have a free two yearly mammogram. Women aged 40—49 and those aged over 74 are also eligible to receive a free mammogram.

Associated Professor Sanjay Warrier said “I’ve formulated an easy system to help women undertake self-examinations at home and I call it ‘LOOK, LIFT, FEEL”.

“LOOK, LIFT, FEEL only takes a few min­utes and should be done regularly. Look at your breasts in the mirror to identify any changes in shape, colour or texture. Stand in front of a mirror with your shoulders straight and your arms on your hips. Look for any changes in the size, shape or sym­metry of your breasts. Check for dimpling, puckering or changes in the skin texture.

“Then lay flat and lift your arm up over your head and with two fingers together, using the pads of each finger, place gentle pressure on the breast moving your fingers around in a circular motion. Cover the en­tire breast from top to bottom and side to side. Also feel up under the armpit. Change sides and repeat.

“Take your time and feel for lumps or changes in the breast. Remember that your breasts may be dense and will natu­rally feel uneven. If you encounter any changes or unusual lumps, thickening or hardened knots, or nipple discharge, book an appointment with your doctor. The ma­jority of issues are benign, but it’s always important to check things with your doctor.”

“Regular self-exams can help you be­come familiar with how your breasts nor­mally look and feel, making it easier to no­tice any changes.”

If you are one of the estimated 20% of Aus­tralians that suffer from hayfever, Spring is not a time for celebration but rather a time of sneezing, mucous and the dreaded itchy eyes! Allergic conjunctivitis is the bane of many a hay fever sufferer, so what is the best way for you to manage your itchy eyes?

1. Avoid your allergy triggers. Plants, grasses or pollens that trigger your al­lergy symptoms should be avoided. Try saving outdoor activities to the even­ing or just before dawn when the pollen count is lower.

2. Keep allergens away. Regularly wash­ing your face, hair and around your eyes, frequently changing your clothing and lin­en can help to remove the little allergen particles that accumulate.

3. Treat your itchy eyes with medica­tion. Over the counter antihistamine eye drops can provide relief for the symptoms of allergic conjunctivitis. Avoid using the “red eye” drops. These will only tempo­rarily hide the redness without actually addressing the cause of your red, itchy eyes. For persistent allergy, use a mast cell stabiliser eyedrop leading up to and during spring to act as a preventative. These are available as a combination drop alongside an antihistamine.

4. Treat any concurrent dry eye disease. Having dry eyes will exacerbate your al­lergic conjunctivitis symptoms and our tears act as a natural means of flushing allergens out of our eyes. Watch out with taking oral antihistamines as these can cause dry eyes.

Book an appointment at Hansens Optom­etrists where we can formulate a personal­ised plan. We can prescribe more effective eye drops and treat other eye problems that might be masquerading as allergy symp­toms.

Eye Health Brought to you by Hansen’s Eyecare Plus

Miss Peg pictured during the big chop, assisted by local hairdressers Adele and Janice. Doug Pout was on hand to help Peg watch her grandson Aiden Lynch, via video call, also shave his head to raise money for the Cancer Council in honour of his grandmother.

On Saturday, 31st August, adored local Peg Lynch, affectionately known as ‘Miss Peg’, who has been diagnosed with termi­nal cancer, donated her hair to a charity that makes wigs for kids and at the same time helped raise some funds to assist Parkes CanAssist.

Peg was surrounded by close friends and family at her home, and with the as­sistance of Janice, from Janice Hair Salon, and Adele from Adele’s Hair Salon, when she braved the big chop.

Janice from Janice Cassidy’s Hair Salon, who is a long time friend, and lives just up the road from Peg also talked to the crowd about “The Wig Library” which is a free ser­vice offered in Parkes for cancer patients.

“It’s just like borrowing a book,” said Janice.

After the big chop, a wide-eyed ‘Mr Peg’ could not stop complimenting his wife on her new hair style, saying: “I didn’t recog­nise her, I looked over there and I was like, who’s that?”It also appears Miss Peg’s generous na­ture and charity is inspiring others, as The Forbes & Parkes Phoenix received the fol­lowing message from Paula Sutherland:

“We all work at Vinnies [with Peg] so we had a container and message on the morning tea table at Vinnies. Trish Davies’ grandson Jaycob was visiting with his grandmother and when she tried to give him money earned for helping her in the garden he said to her, “Please give it to someone in need.” He then put the $10 in the donation container for Peg’s hair trim for Canassist. We were all touched by this heartfelt gesture from a 12 year old boy.”

Peg’s initial fundraising target was $500 and she can not believe that the target has already surpassed $3,000.

You can still support Peg in her final act of kindness by making a donation at www.mycause.com.au/page/351308/pegs-fund­raiser-for-can-assist?popup=1.