Immunization Guide for Pharmacists November 2019

Pharmacy team members have the amazing opportunity to help ensure that people and communities are protected with proper immunizations during influenza (flu) season and beyond, but they may struggle with identifying patients who may benefit because it can be difficult to gather information from patients.

Perhaps no sector has benefited more from technological advancement than health care, and within that world, community pharmacy is among the biggest beneficiaries.

Immunization needs for patients aged 19 to 64 years and afflicted with chronic conditions are often overlooked, and necessitate more attention and resources. Pharmacies traditionally do not focus on this patient population; instead often choosing to focus primarily on the population 65 years and over. However, engaging with patients in the 19- to 64-year-old group could go a long way in helping to fill the current immunization void in this population.

Community pharmacies that provide immunization services have proven their success time and again, but they still face roadblocks. Many state laws and regulations still do not allow pharmacies to take full responsibility for vaccinations, and states regulate immunization services at pharmacies in different ways.

Immunization room conversations often start with a joke from a nervous patient, who will say that they do not like needles or that they are afraid the needle stick will hurt. When a needle breaks the skin, it may cause a small amount of pain; however, what constitutes an actual injection-site reaction? The following discussion describes the adverse effects (AEs) that make up true injection-site, or “local,” reactions and how pharmacists should respond to them.

Despite widespread efforts to educate people about the importance of vaccinations, vaccine-preventable diseases continue to negatively impact the health of the US population.

Previously, vaccination was not recommended for patients in a certain age range, as there was no demonstrated benefit to HPV vaccination; however, this is about to change.