Pharmacist Rowena Fu, of Unichem Mount Dispensary, said her pharmacy was one of the first in the area to offer the Community Pharmacy Anticoagulation Monitoring Service (CPAMS).
"Our Warfarin patients come in, we do a blood test and they get those results straight away," Fu said.
"Those results also go straight to their doctor. The INR machine only uses a pin-prick as it just needs a drop of blood. It's much better for patients who might not like needles or have other issues around giving blood.
"We manage the medication and advise people on what dose to take. For complex patients on a number of medicines we put those medicines in a pre-sealed clear plastic roll in the order they need to take them. For the patients, it's very convenient and it's a free service we provide."
Despite the assistance available, compliance can still be an issue. But once people understand more about their medicines and their family understand why taking the medication is important we see much better results, Fu said.
Bay of Plenty District Health Board (BOPDHB) primary care portfolio manager Andrea Baker said the service was very client-centric.
"It meets the BOPDHB aims of increasing capacity in health, having ease of access for the local community and taking care of the local community."
Patients also get a chart with a picture of the pills they must take, what they're for, and how often they should take them. It's especially helpful for people on multiple medicines. They get a new chart whenever there are any medicine changes.
The service is available at the following pharmacies:
Tauranga
Unichem
Mount Dispensary
Bethlehem
Faulkner's Pharmacy
My Pharmacy Papamoa Plaza
Te Puke
Life Pharmacy Te Puke
Kawerau
Kawerau Pharmacy
Opotiki
Kerry Nott Pharmacy
