Under the deal, when a prescription is filled, a prompt in the pharmacist's computer system will remind them to discuss a particular Blackmores product that has been designed to offset possible side-effects of their prescription drug. For example, if someone is getting a prescription for an anti-hypertension drug, the pharmacist will be prompted to tell them that that drug may lead to low zinc levels and a Blackmores zinc supplement would offset the potential problem. The four ''Companions range'' products will also carry the Guild's gold cross logo, signalling the group's endorsement. Blackmores estimates the arrangement will apply to more than 58 million prescriptions a year - more than a third of the 183.9 million dispensed in Australia through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme last year. The products are expected to cost about $15 each when they come on to the market next month.

In two separate Pharmacy News articles last week, president of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia Kos Sclavos said the deal represented a ''huge opportunity for the male market'' because males don't like visiting doctors, while also telling pharmacists to use their clinical skills to recommend the products ''where appropriate''. He said it was the first time the Guild's computer system, which is used by about 70 per cent of members, would prompt pharmacists to discuss complementary medicines with patients. The system has been used to alert pharmacists to potential drug interactions or medication compliance issues. Australian Medical Association president Steve Hambleton said the move was outrageous and smacked of commercial interest rather than clinical need. He said he did not know of any solid evidence backing the combination of dietary supplements with the prescriptions included in the deal. ''I think the evidence for Coke and fries is about the same as the evidence for these products,'' he said. Dr Hambleton said the recommendations had the potential to confuse patients, who should trust their doctors to prescribe them what they need without any conflicts of interest.

Geraldine Moses, a drug safety researcher and pharmacist based at Brisbane's Mater Hospital, said she was concerned about the deal because of good evidence that the more drugs a person took, the more likely they were to have adverse reactions and interactions. She said while Blackmores may have evidence showing that prescription drugs reduce particular nutrient levels and that their supplements increase those nutrient levels, it was incorrect to presume that replenishing those levels was the right thing to do. For example, she said that when patients taking an epilepsy drug experienced reduced levels of folic acid as a side-effect of the drug, the provision of folic acid through a dietary supplement caused more seizures for some patients. Consumers Health Forum of Australia chief Carol Bennett said the deal was unethical and had the potential to undermine trust in pharmacists. She urged Australians to demand evidence for the products if their pharmacist recommended them and to report pharmacists to their professional board if they felt they were being sold product unnecessarily. Despite his comments in Pharmacy News, Mr Sclavos rejected allegations the deal was commercially motivated and said he was satisfied Blackmores had good evidence for pharmacists to back the use of their products.

He said the Pharmacy Guild had not received payment for the deal, but that its subsidiary companies, Healthlinks.net and Gold Cross, may have been paid by Blackmores for inclusion in the Guild's computer system and for the Gold Cross logo.