• Phillip D Good, John D Cavenagh, David C Currow, David A Woods, Penelope H Tuffin, and Peter J Ravenscroft.
• Newcastle Mater Misericordiae Hospital, New South Wales. phillip.good@mater.health.nsw.gov.au
• Aust Fam Physician. 2006 Apr 1; 35 (4): 261-4.

BackgroundThere is a disparity of availability and cost of drugs in the community for palliative care patients through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) compared to those available to inpatients in public hospitals.MethodsThe Joint Therapeutics Committee of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine, Palliative Care Australia and the Clinical Oncological Society of Australia surveyed palliative care practitioners in Australia to compile a list of drugs they considered essential.ResultsDrugs nominated generally had good levels of evidence for use in palliative care, although many practitioners still used some without evidence of benefit.DiscussionWe are now working with the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing to agree on a list of drugs for specific palliative care indications. As a result, the first ever section in the PBS for a specific patient population has been created. There is a need for high quality studies in palliative care to determine the best drugs to add to the list.

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