Canadian Center for Vaccinology, Dalhousie University, IWK Health and Nova Scotia Health, Halifax, NS, Canada.
Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.
Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2021 Sep 2;17(9):3052-3065. doi: 10.1080/21645515.2021.1913963. Epub 2021 May 14.
Vaccine coverage is below desired levels in Canada, despite National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommendations. One solution to improve coverage is to offer vaccines in pharmacies. We explore the awareness, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of the general public in four communities in Nova Scotia (NS) and New Brunswick (NB) about the changing role of pharmacists as immunizers. Adult members of the public were invited to complete an online survey through advertisements in print and online, and through e-mail lists at local universities. Immunization status among participants (n = 985) varied across vaccines with slightly more than one-half of the participants (51.8%) reporting receipt of a seasonal influenza vaccine last year, 38.0% reporting receipt of the meningococcal C or ACWY vaccine, and 77.7% reporting receipt of the pertussis vaccine. Despite variable self-reported receipt of vaccines, the pervasive belief that participants were not at risk of getting vaccine-preventable diseases, and a lack of awareness about which vaccines are recommended for adults, participants in this study held vaccine-positive beliefs. Participants, especially those who had previously been vaccinated in a pharmacy (39.0%), were supportive of the inclusion of pharmacists as immunizers although nearly one-half of the participants would feel more comfortable getting vaccinated by a pharmacist if another practitioner recommended it to them. While cost threatens to be a barrier to pharmacists as immunizers, this study suggests that they are well-positioned to improve vaccine coverage and to communicate recommendations and other vaccine-related information to the public.
尽管加拿大国家免疫咨询委员会提出了建议，但疫苗接种率仍低于预期水平。提高接种率的一个解决方案是在药店提供疫苗。我们探索了新斯科舍省（NS）和新不伦瑞克省（NB）四个社区的普通公众对药剂师作为免疫接种者的角色变化的认识、态度、信念和行为。通过在印刷和在线广告以及当地大学的电子邮件列表中邀请成年公众在线填写调查问卷。参与者（n=985）的免疫状况因疫苗而异，略多于一半（51.8%）的参与者报告去年接种了季节性流感疫苗，38.0%报告接种了脑膜炎球菌 C 或 ACWY 疫苗，77.7%报告接种了百日咳疫苗。尽管参与者自我报告的疫苗接种情况各不相同，但他们普遍认为自己没有感染疫苗可预防疾病的风险，并且对哪些疫苗适合成年人接种缺乏认识，因此，这项研究中的参与者持有积极的疫苗信念。参与者，尤其是那些以前在药店接种过疫苗的人（39.0%），支持将药剂师纳入免疫接种者之列，尽管近一半的参与者如果有其他从业者向他们推荐，他们会更愿意在药店接种疫苗。虽然成本可能成为药剂师作为免疫接种者的障碍，但这项研究表明，他们有能力提高疫苗接种率，并向公众传达建议和其他与疫苗相关的信息。
