Vaccine Review Services Can Help Pharmacists Promote Immunizations and Raise Awareness

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Pharmacy staff members said that VaxCheck, a vaccine review service, was compatible with pharmacy workflow but there were several barriers to its implementation, including workload capacity, access to vaccination records, patient awareness of their vaccination status, and patient willingness to consider recommended immunizations. A service that reviews what vaccines a patient has received over the course of their life can help community pharmacists raise awareness and guide personal immunization plans, new data published in the Journal of the American Pharmacists Association found. The study authors said that while the service was feasible, there were many barriers impacting its implementation.

Vaccine hesitancy in the United States has been on the rise since the COVID-19 pandemic, with 37% of respondents saying they have gotten vaccines in the past, but do not plan on getting any this year, according to a poll conducted by Ohio State University. Data from this poll highlights the need for pharmacists to play a role in increasing vaccine uptake. As trusted and accessible health care providers, pharmacists are well positioned to help increase vaccine uptake, with research demonstrating that when pharmacists are involved in immunization, patients are more likely to receive vaccines. The vaccine review service, called VaxCheck, consists of 3 steps: identifying vaccine history and indications for vaccination, using a clinical decision support tool to determine any recommended vaccines, and either administering the vaccines or working with other health care providers to implement an action plan.

Investigators from the University of Waterloo conducted a study to examine how a novel life-course immunization review service could be used to raise awareness and guide personal vaccination action plans in community pharmacies. The study included 9 pharmacy locations in Ontario, Canada, with 13 staff members and 123 patients participating. The staff members completed 3 rapid quality improvement cycles of providing the vaccine review service and completed interviews at baseline and following each cycle. For the study, researchers developed the vaccine review service, which helped staff members increase patient awareness of vaccination services and deliver individually tailored advice.

The study found that staff members using VaxCheck said it helped them increase patient awareness of vaccination services and deliver individually tailored advice. The staff members said they helped patients make informed decisions by delivering unbiased advice based on evidence and correcting misinformation and disinformation. These conversations also led to a stronger patient relationship. Pharmacists also said that VaxCheck could be tailored so that it was compatible with their workflow and that it was easy and straightforward. However, staff members noted several barriers to the implementation of VaxCheck, including workload capacity, access to vaccination records, patient awareness of their vaccination status, and patient willingness to consider recommended immunizations.

Callan JMB, an integrative logistics company, has announced a new comprehensive lease program for vaccine management that will enable government agencies and private organizations to provide crucial immunizations without the economic burden of purchasing the necessary equipment outright. The lease program includes computer equipment, compliant inventory management, and mobile clinic kits that keep vaccines at required temperatures throughout transit and include everything needed for successful immunizations. The program delivers a state-of-the-art, full-service management system emphasizing quality, responsibility, and accountability, and can help increase access to vaccinations, particularly in rural or underserved areas, by providing a cost-effective solution for vaccine storage and distribution.