Pharmacists working to reach the final 20%

Community pharmacies have been integral in the COVID-19 vaccination campaign across Canada and they could play an even more important role in reaching the remaining Canadians who are hesitant to get their first or second dose. The plans to address vaccine hesitancy includes both one-on-one conversations with patients at the pharmacy counter to programs developed or promoted by pharmacy associations. Vaccination rates for first doses currently hover around 75% in most provinces, but the uptake is slowing. “I think the last cohort of patients is probably the most challenging group to address,” said Angeline Ng, director of pharmacy professional affairs at the Ontario Pharmacy Association. While vaccine hesitancy can and should be addressed by every healthcare professional, pharmacists and their teams are the healthcare professionals easiest to access for most people, Ng said. This makes community pharmacies vital players in reaching the 20 to 25% of Canadians who have yet to get their first dose. “As experienced immunizers, pharmacists are well qualified to help increase vaccine confidence in their patients,” Jake Reid, executive director of the New Brunswick Pharmacists’ Association said. The simplest way to address vaccine hesitancy is to ask patients about their vaccination status when they come into the pharmacy to pick up a medication, Reid said. Asking can initiate a discussion and can increase the chances of uptake. Myla Bulych, director of professional practice at the Pharmacy Association of Saskatchewan, agreed. “Now that vaccine rates are starting to level out, pharmacists could start by asking each patient what their level of interest is in receiving their first or second dose of a Covid vaccine (if they haven’t yet received it), offer clinical information or just a kind ear when they have questions or concerns,” Bulych said. “If the patient is not quite ready, offer the idea that they will be supported when they become ready.” There are many components to vaccine hesitancy, from needle phobia to confidence in the vaccine to the convenience of getting the vaccine. The simplest way to address vaccine hesitancy is to ask patients about their vaccination status when they come into the pharmacy to pick up a medication, Reid said. Asking can initiate a discussion and can increase the chances of uptake. Myla Bulych, director of professional practice at the Pharmacy Association of Saskatchewan, agreed. “Now that vaccine rates are starting to level out, pharmacists could start by asking each patient what their level of interest is in receiving their first or second dose of a Covid vaccine (if they haven’t yet received it), offer clinical information or just a kind ear when they have questions or concerns,” Bulych said. “If the patient is not quite ready, offer the idea that they will be supported when they become ready." There are many components to vaccine hesitancy, from needle phobia to confidence in the vaccine to the convenience of getting the vaccine. A common factor of vaccine hesitancy right now is people who want a second dose of the vaccine, but have questions about mixing types of vaccines. “There are conversations about interchangeability in general,” Reid said. “We’re combating some information where people think that Pfizer is somehow better than Moderna or the other way around, or that they need to ‘complete the set.’” It’s not just pharmacists handling the questions, because many questions about the vaccines come when a patient calls to book their first or second appointment, Reid said. “It is non-immunizers on the pharmacy team who’ll be responding to the calls and they’re being trained by pharmacists on how to respond to them,” Reid said. Ng said Ontario patients continue to have questions about adverse effects, including the most recent concerns about pericarditis and myocarditis with the mRNA vaccines. Pharmacists have been spending a lot of time with patients answering questions and providing information on the vaccines’ benefits, she said Bulych said patients in Saskatchewan are also asking about how COVID-19 vaccines affect fertility. Another factor in vaccine hesitancy is access. Community pharmacies are especially important in rural areas where it might take more time and planning to get to a vaccination clinic. In most cases, pharmacies are more widely distributed than clinics, Reid said. Reid said that the government of New Brunswick is studying vaccination uptake across health regions and has been targeting certain neighbourhoods with pop-up vaccination sites. “There are some mobile pop-up clinics that have been happening and pharmacists have been involved in some of those as immunizers,” he said. Some pharmacy associations have joined campaigns to improve vaccine uptake. The Pharmacy Association of Saskatchewan (PAS) worked with other healthcare organizations on a public education campaign designed to reach youth. PAS also collaborated with other groups to educate healthcare professionals and support staff about COVID-19 vaccination so they could answer question from the general public. PAS provides feedback about adopting a system-level approach to vaccine hesitancy in weekly meetings with to the provincial Ministry of Health and the Saskatchewan Health Authority The Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia (PANS) is also working with the provincial government on strategies to deal with vaccine hesitancy in the coming weeks and months, said Amy Wagg, director of communications of PANS. Neighbourhood Pharmacy Association of Canada is a partner in the wide-reaching This is Our Shot campaign. Other pharmacy associations are making sure their members are aware of vaccine hesitancy resources designed for healthcare professionals. For example, the government of New Brunswick has information on their website about building vaccine confidence with suggested answers to patients’ questions. The New Brunswick Pharmacists’ Association also recommends online education modules by the Canadian Pediatrics Association on how to address hesitancy in a busy practice. “We haven’t created something for ourselves formally because all these resources currently exist,” Reid said. Pharmacies may not yet be seeing a slowing of uptake in COVID-19 vaccines as people rush to book their second dose appointments. In Nova Scotia, “we are fully focussed on delivering vaccines in the province and pharmacy teams are flat out, giving 50% of all vaccines,” wrote Amy Wagg, director of communications of PANS. “Pharmacy appointments are filling almost as soon as they hit the booking system." Once the eager people get vaccinated, there’ll be a lull, Reid predicts. “We saw that in first doses. We got to 70% but to get to 75% took a little bit longer, and the same thing I expect will happen with second doses,” he said.

Pharmacists working to reach the final 20%

Register for free access or login.

Related Topics