Mon 10 August 2026
New pharmacy standards to tackle Australia’s kidney disease crisis
A newly updated pharmacy practice standard for nephrology has been released by Advanced Pharmacy Australia (AdPha) to strengthen the role of pharmacists in improving outcomes for people living with kidney disease.
Kidney disease is often described as the ‘silent killer’, with chronic kidney disease (CKD) affecting approximately 11 per cent of adults in Australia. In 2021-2022, CKD was recorded as a diagnosis in 18 per cent of all hospitalisations, with 81 per cent of these hospitalisations involving dialysis.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples are disproportionately affected by CKD, being twice as likely as other Australians to have the disease, 5.3 times as likely to be hospitalised and four times more likely to die from kidney disease. These inequities are not reflective of individual or community deficits, but rather the result of historical injustices and ongoing structural barriers to culturally safe and equitable health care.
Announced as part of Kidney Action Week, the updated AdPha Nephrology Standards provide contemporary guidance for pharmacy teams delivering care to people with kidney disease.
The Standards have been expanded to include new sections covering:
- quality statements and quality elements for best practice nephrology clinical pharmacy services
- how to prioritise nephrology clinical pharmacy services during workforce shortages and other resource constraints
- person-centred care
- the role of pharmacy technicians in nephrology clinical pharmacy services.
The updated Standards were developed through extensive consultation with nephrology pharmacy experts and the broader health profession and was led by Dr Carla Scuderi FANZCAP (Lead&Mgmt, Neph.), Chair of AdPha’s Nephrology Leadership Committee.
Dr Scuderi said pharmacists were uniquely positioned to improve the safety and effectiveness of medicines used to prevent and manage kidney disease.
‘Medicines are central to both preventing and managing chronic kidney disease, from slowing disease progression to managing complications and symptom burden.
‘Pharmacists bring a unique combination of clinical expertise, systems thinking and practical problem-solving to the interprofessional team. We are well positioned to identify opportunities for medicines optimisation and turn them into safer, more effective care for patients.
‘These Standards provide pharmacy teams with a clear framework to deliver high-quality nephrology services and ensure medicines management remains an integral part of kidney care.’
AdPha President Assoc. Prof Tom Simpson FANZCAP (Lead&Mgmt) said early intervention was critical given the often-silent progression of kidney disease.
‘Kidney disease can progress significantly before a person develops symptoms. By the time it is diagnosed, valuable opportunities to slow progression and prevent complications may already have been lost.
‘The evidence is increasingly clear that pharmacists can make a measurable difference for people living with CKD, including reducing hospitalisations and improving outcomes for people at risk of kidney failure.
’But delivering safer medicines management is not the responsibility of pharmacists alone. Nephrology pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and assistants all have an essential role to play, with pharmacists ideally positioned to lead interprofessional medication safety and medicines optimisation programs in kidney disease.’
‘These updated Standards recognise the contribution of the whole pharmacy team and provide a practical foundation for more integrated, person-centred and safer medicines management across Australia’s health system.
‘I thank the many AdPha members and clinical experts including NACCHO and WEHI who contributed their expertise to this project. Their leadership is helping build a stronger, more consistent approach to nephrology clinical pharmacy practice and, ultimately, safer care for people living with kidney disease.’
The AdPha Nephrology Standards are now available in JPPR via Early View, free – as always – for AdPha members.
A webinar supporting the release of the new standards is scheduled for Thurs 10 September at 1pm AEST with registration free for AdPha Members.