Overview of the COVID-19 and influenza vaccination programme in pharmacy

Community pharmacists have played a key role in the delivery of the seasonal influenza vaccination programme since 2011, and the COVID-19 vaccination programme since 2021. COVID-19 boosters are now offered in spring and autumn to those eligible, in line with public health guidance. Community pharmacies have played a central role in facilitating the co-administration of both vaccines at the same time for eligible groups.

Since the commencement of pharmacy participation in the COVID-19 vaccination programme, approximately 380,000 primary dose vaccines and 1.35 million booster vaccines have been administered in the community pharmacy setting. The peak activity took place during the accelerated booster campaign in January 2022. Since September 2023, community pharmacies have provided 33 per cent of all COVID-19 vaccines.

Approximately 1,000 community pharmacies in all parts of the country provide both COVID-19 and flu vaccinations.

In the 2023/2024 Autumn/Winter campaign, over 325,000 public flu vaccines were administered in community pharmacies across the country. This represents over 27 per cent of the seasonal flu programme.

 

Vaccinations Primary Care Contractors (VPCC) team

The Vaccine Programme is supported by the HSE Vaccinations Primary Care Contractors (VPCC) team, who coordinate the service and provide relationship management support to community pharmacists and GPs.

A sustainable and enduring COVID-19 model is now being established to support the public in accessing vaccinations in their local communities. The Primary Care Contractors Vaccination Programmes for COVID-19 and flu are an important pillar in preventative health measures as part of the HSE Enhanced Community Care (ECC) Programme. The ECC programme is developing and increasing community-based health services. This supports the achievement of more integrated Primary Care services. The VPCC is aligned to the HSE commitment of achieving decisive shift towards stronger, more integrated primary care services.   Image 1: Map of pharmacies providing vaccinations in Ireland  

What is the Vaccinations Primary Care Contractors (VPCC) team?

The mission of the HSE Vaccinations Primary Care Contractors team is that people in Ireland can access vaccination in their local community as needed, through GPs and community pharmacies, via a service which is safe, trusted, responsive and quality focused. The Vaccinations Primary Care Contractors (VPCC) team supports the provision of vaccinations, for COVID-19 and influenza, across primary healthcare locations, i.e., pharmacies and GP practices. They support improving the experience of those accessing vaccinations by:

• Co-ordinating and integrating services in line with vaccination campaigns;
• Supporting people to access vaccination services locally to meet public health requirements; and
• Supporting collaborative working to provide person-centred care.

The VPCC team lead in the planning and delivery of vaccination services within primary care, providing a point of contact for contractors and their representative bodies to engage with the HSE. The VPCC team work closely with representative bodies including the IPU and other key stakeholders to enable an efficient and quality driven service for the implementation of the COVID-19 and influenza vaccination programmes. This includes liaising with the National Immunisation Office to operationalise the most recent influenza and COVID-19 vaccination clinical guidance in the primary care setting.

Figure 1: COVID-19 Vaccination in Community Pharmacies

 

How does the VPCC team support community pharmacies in vaccination?

The VPCC have a website, which has a number of resources available to pharmacists who are already participating in the vaccination programme, or those who are contemplating joining the programme for the first time (see hse.ie > HSE Structure > National Contracts Office > Vaccination Primary Care Contractors Programme). This includes guidance notes covering a range of topics such as:

• COVID-19 vaccine consumables;
• Completing vaccine records on IT systems;
• Repeat primary courses for individuals who have been clinically directed to restart their vaccination schedule;
• Advice when primary vaccination has been administered outside of the Republic of Ireland;
• Pathway for individuals who seek COVID-19 vaccination following an allergic reaction to vaccination in the past;
• Advice for businesses who have had a change in GMS contract number; and
• Guidance on accessing vaccination for those requiring an alternative to the deltoid injection site.

The VPCC is also responsible for updating the Operational Guidance for vaccination in community Pharmacy mRNA vaccines, which is a useful resource for pharmacists planning a COVID-19 vaccination service (available at VPCC website > Information for Community Pharmacies).

The website also contains a section on frequently asked questions, which is responsive to the feedback and queries, which have been received over the most recent campaigns from pharmacists. It deals with common queries, such as the steps necessary to join the vaccination programme, how to register details on the HSE Pharmacy Finder search site, or how to return expired/unused stock.

 

What is the VPCC role in the LAIV Schools Programme planning 2024/2025?

The LAIV nasal spray for children was introduced in Ireland for the first-time in 2020/21. A high uptake of LAIV is required in eligible children in order to achieve the population level benefits of the programme. International evidence (UK) supports the theory that uptake of the children’s flu vaccination in primary school age children increased, when administered in schools.

Following on from this international evidence, the provision of LAIV to children aged 2-12 years in primary school settings has been identified as a key priority, and the HSE have encouraged pharmacies and GPs who wish to engage in the LAIV Schools Programme to reach out to mainstream primary schools ahead of the summer break. Community pharmacy is as an important pillar in the provision of LAIV to children, both through the proactive engagement with schools and as a source of trusted healthcare advice for parents and guardians. In the 2023/2024 vaccination campaign, pharmacies administered over 45 per cent of all LAIV provided. Based on the initial feedback from providers, it is anticipated that the coverage and uptake of LAIV in this cohort will grow year-on-year as more pharmacists pro-actively engage with the schools in their locality.

The VPCC team are working to compile a list of schools who are receptive to the service being provided by a pharmacist or GP, and are asking providers to submit details of the schools, including school roll number, using the Schools LAIV Template, which is available on the VPCC website. This will assist the HSE to co-ordinate the services provided by HSE mobile vaccination teams, to ensure that the LAIV schools programme is delivered in an efficient and equitable manner for the upcoming autumn/winter season.

 

What is the VPCC role in continuous service improvement within the COVID-19 and influenza vaccination programme?

The VPCC team recognise that pharmacists provide an accessible and convenient service to the public through the provision of a quality vaccination service for COVID-19 and influenza vaccines. To further support the role of pharmacists in the provision of COVID-19, we have taken feedback from the IPU and worked closed with HSE PharmaVax IT development and the NIO to enable pharmacists to identify those with an immunocompromised status for the provision of COVID-19 vaccines. Similarly, pharmacists are now able to update an individual’s immunocompromised status for subsequent COVID-19 booster vaccinations. The VPCC has also worked with HSE Digital to merge the ‘Pharmacy Finder’ webpage, so that pharmacists can self-identify when they are providing both COVID-19 and influenza for the co-administration of vaccines during the autumn/winter campaign. As part of the vaccination continuous improvement process, the VPCC team engages on a regular basis with the IPU, the PSI and the PCRS, to respond to system level issues which may impact the operational delivery of COVID-19 and influenza vaccines in the pharmacy setting. We value the feedback of our key stakeholders as well as the individual feedback provided from pharmacists during the vaccination campaigns, which is utilised to improve the service for pharmacy providers and for the public accessing vaccinations. Feedback can be provided to VPCC at Vaccinations.PrimaryCareContractors@hse.ie.