Pharmacies to connect Australians with community groups

A new ‘Join In Join Up’ program  will connect thousands of Australians with community and support groups to  improve their health and wellbeing.

Telstra will use its networks to promote the value of joining in and joining up to improve a person’s health and wellbeing.

When the ‘Join In Join Up’ program is rolled out in the next few months, participating pharmacies will use their customer knowledge and training to identify people who may benefit from joining a community group, such as the elderly, people with disabilities, people with chronic illness and new mothers.

Pharmacy staff will then search a database of 55,000 community groups, providing customers with free information on local groups and activities that suit their needs, interests and stage in life.

The database will include a wide range of community groups from every corner of Australia – from support groups for people recovering from cancer to walking and fitness groups for senior citizens.

“On average, a person visits their local pharmacy every 11 days,” Kos Sclavos, National President of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia said.

“When you team this with the even distribution of pharmacies across city, suburban, regional and rural areas, you get a program that ensures equal access to people, who stand to get the most benefit out of participation in a community group.

As essential parts of every community in Australia, we believe that local pharmacies are perfectly placed to deliver ‘Join In Join  Up’.