Children’s Flu Vaccination Programme 2023/24
From 4 December 2023 all participating pharmacies can now provide LAIV free to all children aged 2-17 for the remainder of the 2023/24 flu season. The HSE has updated key digital patient information materials available at www.hse.ie/flu and certain resources for vaccinators available at immunisation.ie to reflect the extension to the eligible cohort. If you have previously accessed the HSE materials, please delete all cookies from your browser to ensure you are directed to the most up-to-date versions of the HSE materials such as the algorithm and leaflet. Note that the HSE have indicated that it is not possible to update all documents (e.g. LAIV Toolkit to support schools based vaccination) and they have prioritised the updating of patient facing material.
The IPU LAIV Nasal Influenza Vaccination Consent Form and LAIV Influenza Vaccination Service SOP have been updated and are available on the IPU Flu Vaccination Hub.
For pharmacies wishing to engage with schools regarding the provision of an LAIV service, we have been advised that there will be some stocks of LAIV with an expiry date of 13 February 2024 available to order in late December.
Annual Vaccine Stocktake
The annual vaccine stocktake will be sent out by the National Cold Chain Service (NCCS) on behalf of the HSE in December. It is due to be completed by 31 December 2023 via the NCCS portal www.ordervaccines.ie.
HSE Walk-in Clinics
HSE local teams will be providing some walk-in COVID-19 vaccination clinics between now and Christmas to promote uptake in areas with low volume. The clinics are currently being agreed upon within the HSE and will be advertised at a local level.
Ordering COVID-19 Materials
As the COVID-19 vaccination programme has moved to business as usual, patient information leaflets will no longer be distributed with the vaccine. The HSE COVID-19 information booklet and COVID-19 booster vaccination record cards are now available for pharmacies to order on healthpromotion.ie. A new QR code has been added to the booklet and vaccine cards. Patients can scan the QR code to access Patient Information Leaflets (PILs).
