As the community pharmacy flu vaccination service season looms, Leanne Beverley urges pharmacy staff to get involved and make this the most successful year yet.

As we approach September, the focus for most community pharmacies will turn to the flu vaccination service.

In 2015/16 NHS England decided that all community pharmacies should be allowed to vaccinate patients in at-risk groups against flu and the new advanced service was commissioned.

Community pharmacists in England provided 595,467 flu vaccinations to patients under the national NHS Flu Vaccination Service in 2015/16, with 60.9 per cent of community pharmacies participating. In 2016/17 community pharmacists in England administered 950,765 flu vaccinations to patients under the national NHS service, with 71.2 per cent of community pharmacies participating. The average number of vaccines carried out by each participating pharmacy was 113, although three contractors greatly exceeded this by completing over 1,000 vaccinations each.

The annual offering of flu vaccinations at pharmacies helps to reduce GP appointments and unexpected hospital admissions and relieves pressure on our already stretched A&E departments. In addition, the accessibility of pharmacies, our extended opening hours and the option to walk in without an appointment have proved very popular with patients seeking vaccinations.

The delivery of the seasonal flu vaccination in pharmacies will continue as an advanced service for 2017/18. This is great news for patients but also good news for pharmacies as, in the midst of further pharmacy cuts and a significant decrease in category M, services such as this are now an essential means of raising funds for struggling pharmacies. The flu service can be provided by any community pharmacy in England that fully meets the requirements for provision of the service. To begin offering the service pharmacies must first notify NHS England of their intention by completing a form found on the NHSBSA website.

In some areas, flu vaccination has become a competition between GP surgeries and neighbouring pharmacies as the service sits alongside the nationally commissioned GP vaccination service. Some GP surgeries have been spotted placing posters in waiting areas suggesting pharmacies are only doing the service as we make money from it. From a pharmacy point of view, although this is an advantage, we are patient focused and are providing patients with another choice of venue for their vaccination. Most importantly, the key is preventing the spread of infectious disease, complications and possible early death among individuals and this is our main reason for offering the service. Put simply, we are aiding the high immunisation rates and protecting the population’s health. At Monarch Pharmacy we are lucky to not have this problem and we work alongside local GP surgeries to sustain and maximise uptake of the flu vaccine.

So let’s vocalise pharmacy’s efforts and achievements and make this the best flu vaccination season ever for community pharmacy.

Leanne is an accuracy checking pharmacy technician and supervisor at Monarch Pharmacy, Coventry. She is also an NVQ/BTEC assessor for pharmacy training providers, including NPA and Scientia Skills.