Wesfarmers Health

Menu
wesfarmers-health

Search

Author: Lucy

Changes to the Sisterhood Foundation’s Board of Directors

Posted on by Lucy

The Sisterhood Foundation is excited to share an important update to our leadership.

We’re thrilled to welcome Maia Ambegaokar, Sarah Davies AM and Edwina Sharrock OAM to our Board of Directors. Each brings a wealth of expertise and a deep commitment to our mission to build capability in frontline charities that deliver programs and create positive health outcomes in the lives of Australian women and girls.

Ms Ambegaokar brings specialised expertise in impact measurement, helping to ensure the Foundation continues to drive meaningful outcomes, Ms Davies offers deep not-for-profit leadership experience and a strong understanding of the philanthropic sector, and Ms Sharrock, a maternity nurse and successful entrepreneur based in Tamworth, brings valuable lived experience and a vital rural, remote and regional perspective to the board.

We also wish to acknowledge and sincerely thank our outgoing Board members Peter Sanguinetti, Jennifer King, and Nicky Long, whose contributions have shaped the Sisterhood Foundation’s evolution over the years.

Peter Sanguinetti has served on the board for 11 years and brought corporate knowledge and governance expertise as both Company Secretary and legal advisor. Jennifer King made a significant impact through her financial acumen, and Nicky Long brought vital insights from her experience working with charitable organisations, ensuring community voices remained central to the Foundation’s work.

Foundation Chair and Managing Director of Wesfarmers Health, Emily Amos, said: “This transition marks a new chapter for the Sisterhood Foundation as we continue to hear, acknowledge and address the unique health issues impacting Australian women and girls. I look forward to working with the Board and our Charity Partners to create a healthier future for all women”.

Help determine the future of the Sisterhood Foundation

Posted on by Lucy

Our Sisterhood Foundation is furthering its purpose to hear, acknowledge and address the unique health issues impacting Australian women and girls by partnering with Monash Public Health and Preventive Medicine.

Monash University is surveying women and girls (aged 16 years or older) to identify the health conditions and social issues preventing women and girls from living healthy lives in Australia. The insights gathered will help guide the Sisterhood Foundation in prioritising meaningful support and crafting initiatives that truly matter to the lives of Australians. 

We encourage all women/girls over the age of 16 to complete the short, anonymous survey. The survey takes around 15 minutes to complete and is available in English, Simplified Chinese, Arabic, Vietnamese and Punjabi. The survey will close on Friday 28 February 2025. 

Over the last 13 years, the Sisterhood Foundation (formerly known as the Priceline Sisterhood Foundation) has raised over $10 million and has supported a number of charities that help women and their families across Australia. 

The Sisterhood Foundation has eight strategically aligned charity partners that champion a range of health and wellbeing causes including Jean Hailes for Women’s Health, Smiling Mind, Her Heart, Share the Dignity, Fitted for Work, SisterWorks, Motherless Daughters and Perinatal Anxiety and Depression Australia (PANDA). 

NPSA reaches agreement with Government to secure the national PBS medicine supply chain

Posted on by Lucy

NPSA has welcomed a five-year agreement with the Commonwealth Government that will enable
ongoing timely and equitable distribution of PBS medicines to patients throughout Australia.

NPSA has welcomed a five-year agreement with the Commonwealth Government that will enable
ongoing timely and equitable distribution of PBS medicines to patients throughout Australia.

The first Pharmaceutical Wholesaler Agreement (1PWA) is an agreement between the government
and NPSA – the peak industry body representing full-line Community Service Obligation (CSO)
medicine wholesalers. It addresses significant erosion of supply chain funding and means that
Australians will continue to receive the uninterrupted medicine distribution service they have come to
rely on.

The partnership between the Commonwealth and the CSO medicine wholesaler industry was
established more than 20 years ago and underpins the ongoing reliability of the PBS, supporting the
Commonwealth’s promise of equity of access to all Australians set out in the National Medicines
Policy.

NPSA Chair Richard Vincent said, “We are extremely pleased to have finalised this five-year
agreement which secures medicine management and distribution and benefits all Australians. The
1PWA will enable available medicines, whether they be everyday tablets, high care specialised
therapies or cold chain products to be carefully managed and distributed reliably to patients, no matter
where they live.

“As climate-related disasters increase, our role is of heightened importance in reaching impacted
communities during emergencies such as cyclone, flood or bushfire.

“Through our commitment to the CSO, we are proud to provide 24-hour service to Australia’s 5900
community pharmacies, in the suburbs of our major cities and in rural and remote locations. With the
benefit of this agreement, we look forward to supporting government health initiatives and pharmacy’s
wider role in providing healthcare services to patients.”

Devoted to the healthcare sector, NPSA members API (Australian Pharmaceutical Industries), NPD
(National Pharmacies Distribution), Sigma Healthcare and Symbion employ more than 3,400 people
and operate a network of national distribution centres that safely distributes more than 316 million
units of prescription medicines into community pharmacies each year and more than 2 million units of
health-related products each day.

1PWA is a direct agreement between the government and NPSA and each CSO wholesaler will have
its own supporting agreement, reflecting the terms of the 1PWA. Previously, funding for medicine
distribution formed part of the Community Pharmacy Agreements with government.

1PWA represents a new level of collaboration with government to deliver for patients and the NPSA
sincerely thanks the Minister for Health and Aged Care, The Honourable Mark Butler, his team and
department for their work in finalising the agreement.

Sisterhood Foundation expands remit, welcomes new charity partners and reveals new look

Posted on by Lucy

With more than $10 million raised over 13 years, the Priceline Sisterhood Foundation is growing its impact with a new focus on the health and wellbeing issues faced by Australian women and girls.

Relaunching as the Sisterhood Foundation with a modernised visual identify, the Sisterhood has also unveiled a new purpose to hear, acknowledge and address the unique health issues impacting Australian and women and girls through building capability in frontline charities.

In line with its new purpose, the Sisterhood is proud to add four new strategically aligned Charity Partners that champion a range of issues and causes – Jean Hailes for Women’s Health (women’s health education), Smiling Mind (mental health and wellness), Her Heart (heart health for women) and Share the Dignity (tackling period poverty among those women and girls experiencing homelessness, domestic violence and disadvantage).

The new charities join the existing four Charity Partners: Motherless Daughters (supporting women and girls who suffer grief due to mother loss), PANDA (perinatal anxiety and depression), Fitted for Work (helping those seeking employment to become job-ready) and SisterWorks (helping refugees, migrants and asylum-seeking women gain economic empowerment).

Chair of the Sisterhood Foundation and Wesfarmers Health Managing Director Emily Amos said, “The Sisterhood Foundation has a proud history of supporting Australian women and their families. This exciting next chapter will further strengthen the Sisterhood’s impact and empower our new and existing Charity Partners to keep growing and supporting women and girls across the country”.

From 2025, the Foundation will become the official charitable cause for all Wesfarmers Health businesses including SILK Laser, Clear Skincare, InstantScripts and SiSU Health Group, alongside Priceline Pharmacy and Australian Pharmaceutical Industries.

Statement from InstantScripts regarding withdrawal of infringement notices by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)

Posted on by Lucy

InstantScripts welcomes the TGA withdrawal of infringement notices issued to its online prescription website, which alleged unlawful advertising of prescription-only medicines.  The withdrawal is part of the settlement of judicial review proceedings brought by InstantScripts.

“We are pleased the TGA has acknowledged InstantScripts’s genuine and ongoing efforts to comply with the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 (the Act). InstantScripts is committed to providing affordable and accessible telehealth services to people throughout Australia for those times when they cannot access their regular doctor” said Richard Skimin, General Manager of InstantScripts. 

InstantScripts also welcomes the publication of further guidance by the TGA regarding advertising prescription medicines.

“InstantScripts provides an important and convenient telehealth service for many Australians to support the efforts of their usual health providers.  Telehealth consumers must have confidence in the quality of services provided, so it’s critical the rules by which the industry operates are clear and consistently applied,” said Mr Skimin.

About InstantScripts:

InstantScripts is Australia’s largest, full-service telehealth provider offering affordable and convenient services 24/7, underpinned by robust clinical governance oversight.  InstantScripts was acquired by Wesfarmers Health in July 2023.

Statement from Emily Amos, Managing Director, Wesfarmers Health regarding Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) decision on Sigma / Chemist Warehouse merger

Posted on by Lucy

Wesfarmers Health notes today’s decision by the ACCC that it will not oppose the Chemist Warehouse / Sigma merger.

The Chemist Warehouse / Sigma merger represents a different operating model for retail pharmacy in Australia.

Through complex ownership structures and transactions, Chemist Warehouse has been able to navigate certain key aspects of pharmacy regulation to enable a level of corporatisation in the sector, which will only increase as a result of the merger.

The new, merged entity will have retail pharmacy sales which are three times those of its closest competitor. It is already a very substantial participant in the industry and over time, we expect that the merger is likely to bring change to the community pharmacy sector.

We know that community pharmacies are an important source of advice and healthcare for Australian patients.

API and Priceline Pharmacy remain committed to supporting community pharmacy and franchise partners to innovate and succeed in this different environment, and to make healthcare more accessible and affordable, for all Australians.

Priceline Pharmacy will continue to enhance its market-leading retail offer in support of its franchisees, helping them evolve and strengthen their businesses.