Vaccines and Injectables
Autumn/Winter Vaccination Programme Update
The Autumn Winter Vaccination Programme is underway, with the official public communications to commence in early October.
1.
Vaccine supply
The delivery schedules and allocations for vaccines can be found within NCO-34-2026 Autumn / Winter Vaccination Programme 2026/2027. Pharmacies are currently able to order adjuvanted (enhanced) inactivated influenza vaccine (aIIV) Fluad, Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine (LAIV) Fluenz and the COVID-19 vaccine Comirnaty XFG 30 micrograms. First deliveries commenced to sites earlier this week. Pharmacies can provide vaccination services with these vaccines once they have all the necessary training completed and relevant governance structures are in place.
The standard Inactivated Influenza Vaccine (IIV) supplied for this year’s programme is estimated to be available for ordering from the last week of September. This year the manufacturing and corresponding supply of IIV was significantly impacted. As a result, stock supplied to the Irish market has been prioritised for the national programme and no private IIV stock authorised in Ireland is currently confirmed as being available. Current flu vaccination services are therefore focussed on vaccination of patients in relevant at-risk groups for which public stock is available. At the time of writing, these are adults aged 65 years and older who are recommended to receive Fluad and children aged two to 17 years who are recommended to receive Fluenz. To support members with communication to patients around service availability we have created two posters which are available here and here.
The NCCS are experiencing a huge level of activity facilitating delivery of all vaccines involved within the Autumn Winter Vaccination Programme. Any queries regarding vaccine stock or allocations should be notified to vaccines@udd.ie. Within the email the pharmacy NCCS account number should be referenced, it is also advised that details of clinics/schools planned and the number of confirmed patients/students, where possible, should also be outlined.
2.
HSE Resources
HSE National Immunisation Office (NIO) key clinical guidance and resources for healthcare professionals administering vaccines during the upcoming vaccination season, including summary table of groups recommended for vaccination, consent forms and algorithms, have been made available on the HSE NIO Influenza (flu) and COVID-19 Vaccination Programme 2026/2027. For any clinical queries the NIO can be contacted at immunisation@hse.ie.
The HSE have a ‘Vaccine management, storage and ordering’ page which provides key guidance and resources for healthcare professionals supporting vaccine storage, handling and ordering.
The HSE Vaccination Primary Care Contractors site contains useful operational information including FAQs, Vaccination Programme Guidance Notes, National COVID-19 and Influenza Vaccination Programme Operational Guidance for Community Pharmacy, LAIV Primary Schools Programme 2026/2027, Circulars and Contact details for queries. Please note contact details for HSE Pharmavax support have changed to HPPVacSupport@healthmail.ie and/or HPPVacSupport@hse.ie.
3.
LAIV Schools Programme
Updated materials to support the LAIV Schools Programme are available and include:
- HSE Children’s Flu Leaflet (Healthpromotion order no. HNI01369)
- LAIV School Pack (Healthpromotion order no. HNI01730)
- LAIV Record Card (Healthpromotion order no. HNI01839)
- Toolkit to Support the Administration of the Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine (LAIV) Fluenz nasal spray suspension to Children in School Settings by Primary Care
Please note that the HSE Toolkit outlines that “At least two trained vaccinators should attend each vaccination clinic. If two trained vaccinators cannot attend, then one trained vaccinator must attend with an appropriately trained healthcare worker trained in the management of anaphylaxis and basic life support, working under the clinical governance of the GP or Registered Pharmacist”.
IPU Professional Academy has developed a course ‘Anaphylaxis Identification and Management for Healthcare Workers’.
The aim of this training module is to provide community pharmacy based healthcare workers with the skills and knowledge to enable them to identify and manage anaphylaxis while working under the clinical governance of a trained vaccinating pharmacist, particularly when delivering a school based LAIV clinic. It is also advised that the healthcare worker have a valid certificate in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) in line with the requirements outlined at https://iiop.ie/cpr-training-information.
Pharmacies have until 25 September to notify the HSE of primary schools that they will be providing an LAIV clinic(s) in. Should a pharmacy wish to engage with further primary schools in relation to this service they can email the HSE at pharmacyvaccines@vision.com to request a list of primary schools within their local area who have not yet had arrangements confirmed for a LAIV service.
Pharmacies may find the HSE Guideline for maintaining the vaccine cold-chain in vaccine cool boxes useful when planning for the transport of vaccines.
Documentation to support the LAIV Schools programme, including IPU Guidance and Template Risk Assessment for Off-site Vaccination in a Primary School Setting, is available
on the IPU LAIV Vaccination Hub.
4.
PSI Guidance
Updated PSI guidance documents relating to the provision of vaccination services by Pharmacists will be available shortly.
5.
Training
It is important to ensure that your training and that of your pharmacy team is up to date. Information on training requirements can be found on the PSI website here. Pharmacists should complete a self-assessment of competence at least annually and before the influenza season.
Vaccine specific training on the administration of vaccines is no longer mandatory but remains recommended. Pharmacists must ensure they have up to date knowledge on any vaccine they administer. In this regard pharmacists can complete the specific training modules where available, and/or through review of, or having up-to-date knowledge in the relevant National Immunisation guidelines for Ireland, the Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC) for the vaccine and HSE guidance (where applicable).
To assist you with identifying your training requirements for the supply and administration of vaccinations the IIOP has developed a Vaccination Training Identification Tool which can be found towards the bottom of this page.
The NIO training module ‘mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine Formulations for People Aged 6 Months and Older’ in respect of Comirnaty® XFG 30mcg is available on HSeLanD.
The Administration of Influenza Vaccine training programme for the 2026/27 season and Delivery of a Pharmacy-Based Vaccination Service training programme are available on the IIOP platform.
6.
Pneumococcal Vaccination PPV23
Since 1 May 2026, Community Pharmacies have been enabled to provide Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) to healthy individuals aged 65-and-older as part of the national programme. Many of these patients will be presenting for flu and COVID-19 vaccination over the coming weeks.
For an individual to be considered ‘healthy’ and therefore eligible for the reimbursed PPV23 service they must not have a risk factor as outlined within Table 16.1: Conditions associated with an increased risk of invasive pneumococcal disease of the National Immunisation Guidelines of Ireland Chapter 16 Pneumococcal Disease. To support members in the identification of patients eligible for this service we have developed a Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23): Decision tool for vaccination of those aged 65 years or older in a Community Pharmacy setting. Clinical decision tools, developed by HSE NIO, are also available on the IPU Pneumococcal Hub.
Full criteria for eligibility are outlined within HSE Circular NCO-15-2026 in relation to Public Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) in Community Pharmacy. These resources and further information is available within the IPU Pneumococcal Vaccination Hub.
7.
IPU Professional Academy Partner Webinar- Pneumococcal Disease and Vaccination: The Community Pharmacist’s Role.
The IPU Professional Academy as part of their Autumn Programme is hosting a partner webinar on Pneumococcal Disease and Vaccination: The Community Pharmacist’s Role. The partner webinar is in association with MSD and will be presented by Ashley Duane, MPSI. It will take place on Tuesday 22 September at 7.30pm. This webinar will be broadcast using the GoToWebinar platform. You do not need to download any software, unless you are using a mobile device where you will be prompted to download the app.
You must register in advance of the webinar broadcast. Please click here to register for the webinar. Please note, you must be logged in to the IPU Professional Academy Learning Management System (LMS) to register.
8.
IIOP “In conversation with….” Update on the Influenza and COVID-19 Vaccination Programme 2026/2027 Webinar
As part of the IIOP “In conversations with…” series the IPU and the NIO will present an Update on the Influenza and COVID-19 Vaccination Programme 2026/2027 webinar on Wednesday 30 September. Dr Louise Marron and Eileen Butler, HSE NIO, will explain to participants the clinical considerations for this upcoming vaccination programme. Ms Susan O’Donnell, IPU, will outline key operational aspects. Further details, including how to register, will be provided shortly.
9.
Communications
There are a number of materials available for pharmacists to order from healthpromotion.ie to support their vaccination clinics. A list of available items, and where appropriate versions to download, can be found here. Ensure you are logged in to see all orderable materials, as some may be restricted to public users.
The HSE NIO will issue a partner pack to support pharmacies with the promotion of the Autumn Winter Vaccination Programme. We will notify members once this is made available and welcome pictures of activities that take place with the materials. Feel free to tag the IPU!
Pharmacies are asked to review the HSE Pharmacy Finder- Find a vaccine to ensure their details are correct for the upcoming campaign. Changes required can be submitted through Pharmacy service listing request.
10.
IPU Support
The IPU has three vaccination hubs dedicated to the Autumn Winter Vaccination Programme. These are the IPU Covid-19, Flu Vaccination and LAIV Vaccination hubs. The hubs are a central point for support information, both clinical and operational, and are updated regularly. Many of the documents outlined above are available on these hubs. In addition, the following vaccination SOP templates are available:
IPU SOP Template for the Provision of a Comirnaty® XFG Vaccination Service
IPU SOP Template for the Provision of an IIV and aIIV Vaccination Service
We will continue to provide updates via the news section of the IPU website, the weekly eNewsletter. You can also contact the IPU Professional Services team pharmacists@ipu.ie should you have any queries/require support in relation to vaccination services.