The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC), Pharmacy Voice (PV) and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) have issued a joint response to the ‘review of the procurement of seasonal flu vaccines.’
Rob Darracott, chief executive of Pharmacy Voice said:
“We support the government’s desire to make the vaccine supply chain robust but we remain unconvinced that central procurement is the answer to the problem of low uptake amongst target groups for seasonal flu. Instead, the focus should be improving access by widening the network of providers, especially community pharmacies. This has been shown to have the effect of increasing uptake – it surely makes sense to go with what we know works in practice.
“Furthermore, central procurement has the potential to disrupt the supply of vaccine for private immunisations which would get in the way of an increasingly popular route of access for people wishing to take responsibility for maintaining good health over the winter period. Clinical professionals should be able to access stock at all times, and be able to provide flu vaccinations at the most convenient locations for patients to maximise uptake.”
Barbara Parsons, Head of Pharmacy Practice, PSNC said:
“NHS Pharmacies in England provide access to high quality healthcare services at times and in locations convenient to where people live and work. This accessibility is important in encouraging take up of vaccination for influenza, particularly for those members of the population that do not regularly access medical services. The benefits of pharmacies providing vaccination against influenza as demonstrated in the 2010 – 2011 winter season will be lost if pharmacies are not able to readily obtain supplies of the vaccines. Pharmacies have a proven track record of efficient medicines procurement, and we believe that it is better to draw on this expertise rather than attempt to develop alternative, and potentially more costly centralised distribution models.”
Lindsey Gilpin, Chair of the English Pharmacy Board said:
“Hospital and primarycare pharmacists also have a vital role to play in the procurement and administration of vaccinations. They contribute to effective uptake by organising vaccinations directly for staff and patients, commissioning services and redistributing vaccines to areas of greatest need.
“Community pharmacists have proved they are capable of providing flu vaccination services. We believe strongly that the ImmForm central procurement system should be available to all, or alternative procurement systems must be accepted if the NHS and public are to benefit from a range of providers.“