Canberra Now: Canberra hospital pharmacy issues and Geocon's big offer

Happy Friday and welcome to the long weekend. In case you're wondering, my tips for the big games this weekend are Collingwood over West Coast and the Storm over the Roosters.

We're heading for a glorious top of 23 today, followed by a chilly weekend - 16 degrees is the top on Saturday and 19 on Sunday. Not great for any footy barbecues you have planned.

Now let's look at what's making news today.

Canberra Hospital pharmacy is at "crisis point" from understaffing, leading to mistakes and tensions at the hospital, the union representing public pharmacists says.

Professionals Australia ACT director Dale Beasley said hospital pharmacists were under immense pressure - with the department currently running on 50 per cent of the staff needed - due to poor pay and conditions.

The union wrote to Health Minister Meegan Fitzharris earlier this month saying that industrial action was on the table, warning it was only a matter of time before serious mistakes were made.

Daniella White reports here.

Sometimes it feels like every construction site in Canberra is a Geocon building, and now the company is making an aggressive pitch to first-home buyers, offering to match deposits of up to 5 per cent of the purchase price.

The Canberra construction giant says it could comfortably fill its ever-growing number of complexes without chipping in to help first home buyers, but is offering the incentive to help people transition from renting to home ownership.

Blake Foden reports here.

Concern is mounting about proposed changes to sexual consent laws, as the ACT's top prosecutor labelled the push from the Greens "unfortunately misconceived".

Greens crossbencher Caroline Le Couteur wants to introduce an affirmative consent model in the ACT that would define consent as "free and voluntary agreement" and require the accused to prove they knew or were "satisfied on reasonable grounds" that consent was freely given.

But in a scathing submission to an upcoming parliamentary inquiry, Director of Public Prosecutions Jon White said the legislation was "at best unnecessary, certainly confusing, and probably regressive".

Katie Burgess with all the detail here.

Endometriosis affects a large number of women, but still so little is known about the disease, and it's hard to diagnose without surgery.

A new survey developed by Canberra nurse and researcher Melissa Parker will hopefully be a tool to stop women waiting years in pain before getting a diagnosis.

The Period ImPact and Pain Assessment self-screening tool will be rolled out across Canberra and the country to help more women get treatment sooner.

Daniella White reports here.

Have you ever read a book you probably shouldn't have? Perhaps it's just nerds like me that were caught reading Looking for Alibrandi at the age of 10.

This week Australian National University is celebrating banned books, by showing off a collection of books that have been banned at some point either in Australia or overseas.

I've read four on the list in this article, so I obviously need to get cracking.

Check out your list with Karen Hardy here.