World Pharmacy has once again reclaimed its role as an integrated agent within the vaccination cycles that accompany users throughout their lives. The format chosen for this occasion has been a political declaration in which it calls on States where this role is not yet performed by pharmacy professionals, within the context of the World Pharmacy Congress that has recently concluded in Brisbane (Australia). .
The political declaration first indicates the need, at a global level, to “expand vaccination schedules and strategies to guarantee access to vaccines for all age groups beyond childhood.”
“Vaccine-preventable diseases are a major cause of morbidity, including loss of functional capacity, and mortality in older people because the gradual deterioration of the immune system caused by age makes them more susceptible to infections,” explained Mr. Lourenço. As such, the FIP says pharmacists “should be integrated into vaccination pathways for older people, as well as those of other special risk groups, such as people with chronic diseases, pregnant people, health professionals, underserved populations and caregivers. Additionally, the policy statement emphasizes the value of pharmacists in building vaccine confidence and addressing vaccine hesitancy.”
“A lifelong approach to immunization recognizes that health is determined by a series of events that occur throughout life, including vaccines that are known to benefit specific age groups and vulnerable groups,” he says. Lourenço, professional secretary of the FIP and co-president of the FIP.
“One of the key levers to increase vaccination rates at all ages is to increase the convenience of access, to which the pharmacy can clearly contribute,” Lourenço said. To facilitate pharmacists’ contribution to vaccination across the lifespan, the policy statement sets out recommendations for different stakeholders, including governments and policymakers, FIP member organisations, professionals and pharmacy education providers.
These include that governments and policymakers “should remove regulatory barriers” to allow pharmacists to prescribe and administer all relevant vaccines throughout life. It also recommends that policymakers “develop remuneration models for pharmacies to provide sustainable vaccination services throughout the life cycle within the public and private sectors.”
24 European countries
Currently, vaccination in pharmacies is authorized in 24 European countries. In 19 of them, 15 integrated into the European Unionthe punctures are performed by previously authorized pharmacists.
In Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Slovakia, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, community pharmacists vaccinate in the pharmacy. In Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Iceland, European countries that do not belong to the EU, pharmacists also vaccinate in the community pharmacy. In Luxembourg, Finland, Sweden, Croatia and Estonia, vaccination is done in pharmacies but pharmacists do not administer the vaccine.
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2023-10-01 17:02:09
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