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Pharmacists as immunizers: a survey of community pharmacists’ willingness to administer adult immunizations

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Abstract

Background Adult immunization rates worldwide fall below desired targets. Pharmacists are highly accessible healthcare providers with the potential to increase immunization rates among adults by administering vaccines in their practice setting. Objective To determine the attitudes of community-based Canadian pharmacists with respect to expanding their scope of practice to include administration of immunizations. Method An internet-based survey was emailed to community pharmacists across Canada. The survey was piloted through focus groups for qualitative feedback, tested for content validity, and test–retest reliability prior to dissemination. Results There were 495 responses to the survey. The majority (88 %) agreed that pharmacists as immunizers would increase public access, improve rates (84 %), and be acceptable to the public (72 %). However, only 68 % agreed that pharmacists should be permitted to immunize. The majority of respondents (90 %) agreed that certification in vaccine administration should be required for pharmacists to administer vaccines. Pharmacists identified education, reimbursement, and negative interactions with other providers as barriers to pharmacists administering vaccines. Conclusion Canadian pharmacists are willing to expand their scope of practice to include immunization. However, implementation requires professional development and certification in vaccine administration.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Donna MacKinnon-Cameron of the Canadian Center for Vaccinology for her statistical support, the Canadian Pharmacists Association for assistance with survey administration, and Tania Alia for her assistance with manuscript preparation and review.

Funding

This work was supported by the Capital Health Research Fund.

Conflicts of interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare in relation to this work.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Pharmacy, Dalhousie University, 5968 College St, PO Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada

    Nicholas Edwards, Susan Bowles & Jennifer Isenor

  2. Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, 1459 Oxford St, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada

    Erin Gorman Corsten, Susan Bowles & Kathryn Slayter

  3. Department of Medicine, Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre, 1276 South Park St, Halifax, NS, B3H 2Y9, Canada

    Erin Gorman Corsten, Susan Bowles & Kathryn Slayter

  4. Department of Anesthesia, Pain Management, and Perioperative Medicine, Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre, 1276 South Park St, Halifax, NS, B3H 2Y9, Canada

    Mathew Kiberd

  5. Department of Pharmacy, Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre, 1796 Summer St, Halifax, NS, B3H 3A6, Canada

    Susan Bowles

  6. Canadian Center for Vaccinology, IWK Health Centre, 5850/5980 University Ave, Halifax, NS, B3K 6R8, Canada

    Susan Bowles, Jennifer Isenor & Kathryn Slayter

  7. Canadian Center for Vaccinology, IWK Health Centre and Capital Health, Dalhousie University, 5850/5980 University Ave., Halifax, NS, B3K 6R8, Canada

    Shelly McNeil

Authors
  1. Nicholas Edwards
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  2. Erin Gorman Corsten
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  3. Mathew Kiberd
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  4. Susan Bowles
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  5. Jennifer Isenor
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  6. Kathryn Slayter
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  7. Shelly McNeil
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shelly McNeil.

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Edwards, N., Gorman Corsten, E., Kiberd, M. et al. Pharmacists as immunizers: a survey of community pharmacists’ willingness to administer adult immunizations. Int J Clin Pharm 37, 292–295 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-015-0073-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-015-0073-8

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