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Ed Cohen, PharmD, FAPhA: I will move on to the next point. Let’s get back to talking about the pandemic and some of the effects it has had on our patients, our clients, and ourselves. Many of our patients and clients, including some of us, may have delayed routine medical visits. I know there has been a lot of talk in the literature about parents delaying routine immunizations for their children, and there is a lot of missed and late immunizations. We would like to take a few minutes to talk about the role of the pharmacy in catching up, if you will, for missed and late vaccinations. Susie, if you want to start this conversation, we would like that.
Suzanne Soliman, PharmD, BCMAS: Sure. I think the catch-up rates for children who haven’t been vaccinated are close to 15%. It’s a crazy time right now. I think one way the pharmacy can get more involved is that with the pandemic, many daycares and schools that were checking vaccinations have closed, and a lot of parents are using nannies or home options, so nobody checks vaccinations. I think one way is to get more involved in the public health systems in our own cities, within our own communities, by serving on some of the public health boards in our cities. It can help make a difference in some schools and with some children. I think pharmacists can get a lot more involved in this. Most of the communities I see, at least in my state, are filled with doctors and nurses on boards of health, but there are few pharmacists on those boards. I think we could make a difference that way because immunizations for children have been affected, and we don’t want to end up with other issues that you all know about. It is certainly one way to do it. Most schools have already published their plans for the fall. I know the schools, at least in my district, have published what is mandatory in the fall, whether it’s wearing masks or whatever. I think vaccinations should be part of the plan so pharmacies can get more involved in their potential collaboration. There are pharmacists in my community who have partnered with some schools, offering school vaccination clinics, so this is another way for pharmacies to get more involved in helping individuals catch up, especially when they think of children. They said that it is the children of the age group over 2 years old, but still quite young, who lack vaccines. I think catching up with these kids is going to be critical.
Ed Cohen, PharmD, FAPhA: Liz or Jen, as pharmacists and moms, how do you see pharmacy? Liz, in your practice in several states, are you involved in this catch-up? Do you have a message for your staff to promote and help with the service?
Liz Oler, PharmD: Absoutely. We worked hard to provide additional training, especially as I mentioned, during the PREP [Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness] amendment with our increased ability to prescribe and administer. We have given much more training to our pharmacists who had not previously been able to administer to this age group or these types of vaccinations. We tried to get general awareness. Working with school districts is a great way for us to try to connect and grow, so that they know what we can offer. We see the circle has come full circle now because school districts are starting to identify the need for remedial action. In the conversations we have about upcoming flu seasons and so on, many of them are interested in the question, “How do we catch up with our students?” Can we continue to use the pharmacy? As for Jen, that is like advocating in your states for schools to use our pharmacies and to be able to help those immunization rates, whether it is coming in there to do a clinic. flu and everything they need to keep up with it, or it gets to our 4 walls and gets vaccinated that way. This is another advocacy point for the profession, to catch up with the kids because we are still seeing strain on pediatric and family practice practices trying to take care of all of their patients during this time. This is what I would add.
Transcription edited for clarity.
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