[World Immunisation Week] SA falls short on vaccination goals

Along with South Africa - the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Uganda are home to the more than 60% of children who are not immunised against preventable diseases.

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Access to vaccines in all places at all times

Although the World Health Organisation (WHO) has had a measure of success in the global fight against diseases requiring immunisation, they were isolated, with only one out of six targets in the Global Vaccine Action Plan 2011 2020 on track. The plan aims to ensure that no one misses out on vital immunisations.

Access to vaccines in all places at all times is one of the key factors identified by the WHO for achieving significant results in immunisation coverage. This while most of the vaccines needed are freely available from pharmacies and clinics.

Achieving this goal is within reach as South African pharmacies are fully geared to deliver vaccination services, and can assist the public sector in achieving its target.

Community pharmacies often act a primary healthcare clinic

“Trained pharmacists and other healthcare professionals, such as nursing sisters, are legally authorised to administer vaccines in South African pharmacies,” says Lorraine Osman, head of public affairs at the Pharmaceutical Society of South Africa (PSSA).

Furthermore, many community pharmacies operate a primary healthcare clinic as part of their services. Either the pharmacist or a nursing sister performs a number of services, including administration of vaccines and the checking of vaccine records to determine which are still outstanding. This is a crucial function, since by keeping appropriate records, the pharmacist can help determine a child’s vaccination status and may remind parents when the next vaccination is due

Advocating paediatric immunisation

Pharmacists should assist in ensuring access to such services, “In South Africa, pharmacists perform a number of crucial functions to help improve vaccination rates, not least educating and advising the public and other healthcare professionals about immunisation.

Other activities include advocating paediatric immunisation, alerting travellers about immunisation before international travel and identification of high-risk patient groups,” she says.

Individual pharmacists in both community pharmacy and the public sector periodically take part in mass immunisation campaigns to ensure maximum coverage during sporadic outbreaks of communicable diseases, she concludes.