engleski

Attitudes of community pharmacy service users towards vaccination services in community pharmacy

Background information: With the evolution of the role of pharmacists and shifting pharmacists’ focus from drugs to patients more and more novel services are being introduced in the community pharmacy. One example is vaccination in community pharmacy. Rarely have we witnessed such a need for widespread vaccination services like during the COVID-19 pandemic. A number of countries have organised vaccinations by physicians in community pharmacies, including Croatia. In some countries, pharmacists are encouraged to undergo training and provide this service by themselves. Purpose: The objective of our research was to investigate attitudes of Croatians towards vaccination in general and an option of vaccination in community pharmacies. Method: This study was organised as a cross- sectional survey based study. A survey instrument was developed after an extensive literature search by a medical doctor, epidemiologist and a pharmacist. The final survey consisted of 40 items. Questions referred to standard vaccination programme. Vaccination against COVID-19 was not included as it may yield bias as there has been some negativity in the public regarding the short development and approval times for these vaccines as well as some concerns because of the use of a novel platform. The survey was anonymous and participants received no compensation. The research was approved by the Ethics Committee of University of Split School of Medicine. Results: A total of 200 people participated in the study, of which 45 (22.5 %) were men and 51 (25.5 %) were healthcare workers. A total of 108 persons reported getting seasonal shot i.e. influenza shot. Around 20 % (42) of participants reported they know someone who has had an adverse reaction to a vaccine. There were 48 people who had children and of them only 5 (10.4 %) reported their children have not received all the recommended vaccines, and from these 3 reported that they would give all the recommended vaccines to their children if they had another one. There were 41 (20.5 %) participants who weren’t sure whether vaccination performed by an educated pharmacist is as safe as vaccination by a doctor of medicine in pharmacy, while 35 (17.5 %) agreed or fully agreed with the statement that vaccination by an educated pharmacist is less safe than vaccination performed by a doctor of medicine. As little as 16 (8 %) persons would consider paying for services of vaccination in community pharmacy and 119 (59.5 %) would consider it if it were covered by their insurance. Conclusion: In general, our research showed that there is a portion of population interested in vaccination services in community pharmacy. However, there is a need for greater education of population to perceive community pharmacists as competent individuals to perform such services.

pharmacy ; vaccination ; survey

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