We want to keep finding ways to expand to provide the community with what they’re asking for.
“I never thought we’d be doing stitches, tetanus shots and wound dressings,” Mrs McKay explained.
Upper Hutt, in the lower North Island, has a population of 60,000, with a large Maori and Pacific Island community.
Alarmingly, nearly a third of the population can’t register for a GP, including newborn babies who are put on lengthy waitlists. Those who are registered face a four-week wait for appointments.
With the closest hospital a 30-minute drive away and emergency wait times often stretching to seven hours, Queen Street Pharmacy is the only healthcare option for many families.
“We were the first site accredited to provide childhood immunisations because of the panic for mums who can’t register their babies with a doctor to get them vaccinated,” Mrs McKay said.
In April last year, New Zealand pharmacists became authorised to administer childhood vaccinations, including those for children aged under five.
But Mrs McKay, who is also a board member for the Pharmacy Guild of New Zealand, couldn’t wait for that change. She employed nurses to do immunisations, as well as a wide range of other clinical services.
“We were becoming a triage hub – it was becoming dangerous.
“So, we employed onsite nurses to provide a more structured clinical triage centre, particularly for children.”
Her list of services is extensive and includes virtual GP appointments, all immunisations on the National Immunisation Schedule, nicotine replacement therapy, treatment for minor ailments, ear wax micro-suctioning, prescribing antibiotics for strep throat, urinary tract infections and contraceptive pill, wound care, and much more.
“We do wart and skin tag removal, because it is quite an issue for kids.
“They’re embarrassed at school, and they can’t get into a doctor for three months to get the wart on their hand removed.”
While Mrs McKay works tirelessly to identify new ways to help her community, funding and workforce shortages make it difficult to stay sustainable.
“The whole system is under pressure.”
“It’s a nation-wide problem.”
