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Prescription Forms
						
				
		
		
				Under the new Section 88 it is mandatory for the midwife to 
				complete the coding section of a prescription form. This section 
				usually appears in the top left of the prescription form.
		
		
				Generally the codes appear in 3 lines as: 
				
						Y J A O 
						1 3 4 
						Z
				
		
		
				The codes which are applicable for midwives are: 
		
		
				Y 
		
		Patient aged between 0 and 5 years 
		
				J 
		
		Patient aged between 6 and 17 years 
		
				A 
		
		Patient aged 18 years and over
		
				
						1 
				
		
		Patient holds a valid Community Services Card 
		
				3 
		
		Patient does not hold a valid Community Services Card 
		
				Z 
		
		Patient holds a High Use Health Card
		
				Midwives are expected to circle the correct age code and the 
				correct Community Services Card/High Use Health Card code. If 
				the code 1 or Z is circled, the midwife should sight the 
				Community Services Card or High Use Health Card to see that it 
				is still valid (all such cards have an expiry date printed on them) 
				and should also record the number of the card on the 
				prescription. You might ask why this is important. The reason it is important is 
				because these codes determine the amount the woman has to pay for her 
				prescription.
		
		
				There are two parts to the charge for any prescription. The first part is the 
				
						automatic co
						‐payment which is set by the Ministry of Health.
				
		
		
				
						• 
						If a woman is coded A 3, the co‐payment she has to pay will be $15. 
				
				
						• 
						If a woman is coded A 1, the co‐
						payment is $3 
				
				Having a Community Services Card or High Use Health Card entitles the
				
						woman to a substantial reduction in the prescription co
				
				
						‐
						payment so it is 
				
				important to get it right.
		
		
				These codes do not impact on the other charge for any medication. Some 
				medications are fully funded by the Government while others are only part 
				funded. If you prescribe a part funded medication, the woman will have to 
				pay an additional amount towards the cost of the medicine.
		
		
				If a medication which is not funded is prescribed, the woman will have to pay 
				
						for the medication but not the co
						‐
						payment. 
				
		
		
				For example, if prescribing Clotrimazole, you could prescribe Clomazol which is 
				fully funded or Canesten which is not funded at all.
		
		
				For information on which medicines are fully or partially 
				funded, it is necessary to refer to the Pharmaceutical Schedule 
				published by Pharmac. The full schedule may be found at: 
				
						
								
										<a href="http://www.pharmac.govt.nz/schedule.asp">http://</a>
								
								www.pharmac.govt.nz/schedule.asp. 
						
				
				The site includes an easy to use
				interactive search function.
		
		
				
						Volunteer Midwives for Solomon Islands
				
		
		
				Readers will recall the fascinating article from Chris Likeman 
				about her experiences working in Solomon Islands. Chris has just returned 
				from another trip there and we look forward to hearing about her most recent 
				experiences.
		
		
				Chris has also advised there has been a fantastic response to her request for 
				volunteer midwives to work in the Solomon Islands.
		
		
				
						Cyclone Relief for Oman 
				
		
		Readers will also recall the article from Gill White about the cyclone in Oman. 
		We are very pleased we were able to arrange for several pallets of baby items 
		to be sent to Oman to contribute to the relief efforts. Our thanks to all those 
		who helped and especially to the Prince of Wales Freemasons Lodge who 
		arranged for a significant subsidy on the freight charges.
		
				
						Tony Mansfield 
						Chief Executive