Influenza vaccination coverage at community pharmacies: Positioning, needs, expectations and involvement of community pharmacists in the Franche-Comté region

• Published in: Infectious diseases now (Online) 2021-05, Vol.51 (3), p.285-289
• Main Authors: Kroemer, M., Clairet, A.L., Kabiche, K., Bendjama, A., Bertrand, X., Limat, S., Nerich, V.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Community pharmacist; Community Pharmacy Services; Female; France; Health; Health Services Accessibility; Human health and pathology; Humans; Immunization Programs; Influenza, Human; Life Sciences; Male; Microbiology and Parasitology; Motivation; Patient care; Pharmaceutical sciences; Pharmacies; Pharmacists; Surveys and Questionnaires; Vaccination; Vaccination Coverage
• ISSN: 2666-9919; 2666-9919
• DOI: 10.1016/j.medmal.2020.10.012

•Influenza vaccination performed by community pharmacists was experimented over two consecutive winters (2017–2018 and 2018–2019) in 4 French pilot regions.•In view of its expansion, a prospective study was undertaken in order to evaluate the positioning, needs and expectations of pharmacists in Franche-Comté. These pharmacists are in favor of expanding this new duty given the proviso that theoretical and practical training be given to both pharmacy students and practicing community pharmacists.•This study and its results are of current interest, since they involve the generalization of influenza vaccinations in community pharmacies in all regions of France as of the autumn of 2019. Influenza vaccination coverage currently remains below the 75% recommended threshold by the World Health Organization. To correct this situation, experiments have been successively carried out in France to enable community pharmacists to vaccinate at-risk populations. In this context, a study was conducted with pharmacists from the French Franche-Comté region to evaluate their positioning, needs and expectations regarding influenza vaccination at community pharmacies. A survey was created and sent to licensed pharmacists in March of 2018. This consisted of 4 parts: characteristics of the community pharmacy; positioning of the pharmacist regarding vaccinations carried out at the pharmacy; training needs and expectations; and willingness to implement vaccinations. The participation rate in this survey was 32% (137/427). More than 90% of the pharmacists agreed that community pharmacies’ assets were adequate for the implementation of these vaccinations (accessibility and availability), although 52% considered this complicated. Their main fears were reluctance from patients and conflicts of interest with other health professionals authorized to vaccinate (58%). The needs and expectations regarding pharmacy student training were essential for 94% of them as well as continuous training of practicing pharmacists (96%). The willingness of pharmacists to vaccinate stemmed from the fact that influenza vaccination coverage would increase for at-risk subjects (36%). This survey allowed us to assess the favorable positioning and the real interest of pharmacists from Franche-Comté regarding the influenza vaccination done at community pharmacies, given the proviso that they were given relevant training and allocated adequate resources.