HPE 99 – October 2021 Issue | Page 25

FIGURE 3
Quotes from pharmacy professionals in the UK regarding the perceived benefits of being a peer vaccinator
Sheetal , Pharmacy technician “ Becoming a peer vaccinator for the Pharmacy department was one of the best decision that I made . Pharmacy technicians can provide support to its healthcare allies by spreading the message regarding the safety of the vaccine .”
( see Figure 3 ). There is also a possibility that peervaccinators can help recipients overcome or manage their needle-phobia . In many countries there are mechanisms by which pharmacy technicians can administer influenza vaccines , which should be explored to improve access further , create strong professional advocates for vaccination amongst technical staff , and expand the role of this core member of the pharmacy team .
Health professionals acting as advocates and educators can improve vaccine attitudes and uptake amongst their colleagues . 17 Knowledge of a manager ’ s vaccine status has also been shown to increase uptake among employees . 18 Therefore , being vaccinated and promoting vaccine benefits to their colleagues can go some way to increasing overall vaccine uptake , even if they are not a peervaccinator .
As well as being vaccine advocates , pharmacy professionals can provide annual education and myth-busting for their colleagues . Those who are not vaccinated are less likely to appreciate the extended protection for patients , colleagues , and
Paul , Pharmacy technician “ Pharmacy technicians are the perfect candidates to administer any medications with the right training and support […] I have never felt this is beyond the limit of my responsibility ”
Ryan , Pharmacist “ As an antimicrobial pharmacist , I believe vaccination can reduce demand for antimicrobials , so felt a responsibility to provide this to staff . It also became a great way to tackle vaccine myths openly and provide education and reassurance ”
family with research suggesting knowledge of these extended benefits significantly increases vaccination rates . 12 , 19 Good understanding of influenza and vaccination has been shown to correlate with increased vaccine uptake . 17 , 20 However , ad hoc post-registration education is not always successful in increasing vaccine uptake , 21 , 22 and it is unclear whether education strategies should be universal 11 or profession-focused . 23 Therefore , it is imperative to include transmissible and preventable diseases , vaccine science , and behaviour science within preregistration curricula for pharmacists , pharmacy technicians , and other support staff . Moreover , pre-registration training programmes should also include vaccine administration training .
Finally , senior managers should consider incentivising vaccination for their staff , to help increase uptake by providing an immediate benefit or gain . Examples of successful incentives that are successfully used in hospital staff vaccination programmes are vouchers for a free meal , being entered into a prize-draw , or even providing staff
17 , 23 with additional leave .
Key points
• Pharmacy staff are at risk of acquiring influenza and transmitting it to their patients , colleagues and families .
• Vaccine hesitancy is a significant problem among pharmacy professionals .
• Vaccine hesitancy is complex and reliant on the individual and the workplace , meaning no single intervention can overcome all barriers to increasing vaccine uptake .
• Senior pharmacy professional should improve access , act as advocates for vaccination , and provide ongoing education regarding influenza and vaccination .
• Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians could implement peer-vaccine services to increase access and advocacy .
References 1 European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control . Factsheet about seasonal influenza . 2021 . www . ecdc . europa . eu / en / seasonalinfluenza / facts / factsheet . 2 Jenkin DC et al . A rapid evidence appraisal of influenza vaccination in health workers : An important policy in an area of imperfect evidence . Vaccine X . 2019 ; Jul 11 ; 2:100036 3 Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee . Over 2.6 million flu vaccinations administered by community pharmacists during 2020 / 21 . https :// psnc . org . uk / our-news / over-2-6- million-flu-vaccinationsadministered-by-communitypharmacists-during-2020-21 /. 4 MacDonald NE et al . Vaccine hesitancy : Definition , scope and determinants . Vaccine 2015 ; 33:4161 – 4 .
5 Ruiz AD et al . Influenza vaccination rates among pharmacists . J Am Pharm Assoc 2010 ; 0:517 – 22 . 6 Black CL et al . Influenza Vaccination Coverage Among Health Care Personnel — United States , 2014 – 15 Influenza Season . MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2015 ; 64:993 – 9 . 7 Alshammari TM at al . Health care professionals ’ awareness of , knowledge about and attitude to influenza vaccination . Vaccine 2014 ; 32:5957 – 61 . 8 Hamilton RA , Krockow EM , Vekria P . Attitudes towards influenza and uptake of the flu vaccine : A survey of pharmacy staff working in English hospitals . Vaccine 2021 ; 39 : 2636 – 42 . 9 Hofmann F et al . Infection Influenza Vaccination of Healthcare Workers : a Literature Review of Attitudes and Beliefs . Infection 2006 ; 34:142 – 7 .
10 Shrikrishna D et al . Influenza vaccination for NHS staff : attitudes and uptake . BMJ Open Respir Res 2015 ; 2 : e000079 . 11 Knowler P , Barrett M , Watson DAR . Attitudes of healthcare workers to influenza vaccination . Infect Dis Health 2018 ; 23:156 – 62 . 12 Boey L et al . Attitudes , believes , determinants and organisational barriers behind the low seasonal influenza vaccination uptake in healthcare workers – A cross-sectional survey . Vaccine 2018 ; 36:3351 – 8 . 13 Ajenjo MC et al . Influenza vaccination among healthcare workers : ten-year experience of a large healthcare organization . Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2010 ; 31:233 – 40 . 14 Sundaram N et al . “ I wouldn ’ t really believe statistics ” – Challenges with influenza vaccine acceptance among healthcare workers in Singapore . Vaccine 2018 ; 36:1996 – 2004 .
15 Sánchez-Payá J et al . Influenza vaccination among healthcare personnel after pandemic influenza H1N1 . Vaccine 2012 ; 30:911 – 15 . 16 Dubov A , Phung C . Nudges or mandates ? The ethics of mandatory flu vaccination . Vaccine 2015 ; 33:2530 – 5 . 17 Stead M et al . Improving uptake of seasonal influenza vaccination by healthcare workers : Implementation differences between higher and lower uptake NHS trusts in England . Infect Dis Health 2019 ; 24:3 – 12 . 18 Vallée-Tourangeau G et al . Motors of influenza vaccination uptake and vaccination advocacy in healthcare workers : Development and validation of two short scales . Vaccine 2018 ; 36:6540 – 5 . 19 Toledo D et al . Knowledge of and attitudes to influenza vaccination among community
pharmacists in Catalonia ( Spain ). 2013 – 2014 season : A cross sectional study . Int J Environ Res Public Health 2017 ; 14:756 . 20 Kadi Z et al . Barriers of influenza vaccination in health care personnel in France . Am J Infect Control 2016 ; 44:361 – 2 . 21 To KW et al . Increasing the coverage of influenza vaccination in healthcare workers : review of challenges and solutions . J Hosp Infect 2016 ; 94:133 – 42 . 22 Doratotaj S , Macknin ML , Worley S . A novel approach to improve influenza vaccination rates among health care professionals : A prospective randomized controlled trial . Am J Infect Control 2008 ; 36:301 – 3 . 23 Hollmeyer H et al . Review : interventions to increase influenza vaccination among healthcare workers in hospitals . Influenza . Other Respir Viruses 2013 ; 7:604 – 21 .
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