Table 1.1.

Guidelines and Implementation Tips for Pharmacy-Based Immunization Advocacy

and Delivery
1 Prevention

Protect your patients health by being a vaccine advocate.

Educate your patients and caregivers regarding the impact of disease and the importance of prevention.
If you are not able to administer vaccines, facilitate the opportunity for others to do so by allowing them to
vaccinate at your practice site.
If you are able to administer vaccines, immunize as many patients as possible in accordance with your state
practice act.

Focus your efforts on the most significant and detrimental vaccine-preventable diseases.

Identify which vaccine-preventable diseases are most prominent in your community and which ones are known to
cause the most morbidity and mortality (e.g., influenza, pneumococcal disease, hepatitis A and B, herpes zoster,
meningococcal disease). Either immunize against these diseases or encourage your patients at risk for these
diseases to be immunized.

Routinely determine the immunization status of your patients, and refer as appropriate.

Ask to see your patients immunization records.

When performing a medication therapy review, be sure to ask about previous vaccines received.
When reconciling medications in the health-system environment, include vaccine history in this process.
If you are not able to provide the vaccines they need, refer patients to a provider who can.

Identify your high-risk patients who are in need of specific vaccines.

Recognize procedures, medications, and diagnoses most common in patients in need of vaccines. Examples

include diabetes, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, and heart, lung, kidney, and liver disease.
Check these high-risk patients against the immunization schedule for vaccines that might be indicated for adults on
the basis of medical and other indications.
Recognize the vaccines required in children and adolescents for school or college entry.
Use the most up-to-date schedules to determine the vaccines your high-risk patients need.

Protect yourself from disease and infection.

Be sure you are current on all the vaccines required for health care providers.
Practice good hand washing and hygiene measures.

2 Partnership

Partner with your community and other health care providers to promote and deliver vaccines.

Support the goals and efforts of your local and state health departments.
Collaborate with your health departments and prescribers within your community.
Assist your patients in maintaining their medical homes and continuity of care, which should include routine
vaccinations.
Report vaccines administered to your patients primary care providers and to immunization registries, as
applicable.
During medication reconciliation or the medication therapy review process, ensure that patients in hospital,
institutional, and long-term care settings receive their needed vaccinations.

3 Quality

Before administering vaccines, receive proper education and training.

Receive education that includes epidemiology, vaccine characteristics and contraindications, injection technique,
emergency response, and patient consultation.

Be evaluated to ensure that you are able to address or perform these immunization-related skills.

Keep your vaccine knowledge up-to-date.

Join immunization-related electronic mailing lists.

Receive continuing pharmacy education on vaccine topics.
Refer to current immunization schedules and reference materials.

4 Documentation

Maintain accurate and complete immunization records for your patients.

Whether you are using an electronic or a paper-based system, be sure to record all immunizations provided to
your patients.
Provide your patients with their own immunization records, or offer to complete their records if they have them
available.

Report vaccine adverse events.

Inform your patients primary care provider if the patient experiences an adverse event as a result of a vaccine you
administered.
Complete the appropriate documentation in accordance with the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System
(VAERS), which can be found at http://vaers.hhs.gov.

5 Empowerment

Educate your patients about immunizations while respecting their rights as patients.

Provide information to health care providers, employers, and your community to encourage the appropriate use of
vaccines.
Educate your patients and caregivers about the importance of vaccines in terms they can understand.
Provide patient education materials, such as vaccine information statements, and document the provision of such
materials.