Expanding immunization services

Purpose: Each year in the US, an average of 30,000 people die from vaccine preventable diseases. Although providers may stock seasonal vaccines, there are financial disincentives to keeping regular inventory of others; therefore common vaccines for adults may not be readily available resulting in lower vaccination rates. As vaccination has reduced the burden of infectious disease, the impact of low vaccination rates has a significant impact on public health. The purpose of this pilot is for pharmacy to collaborate with key stakeholders in the hospital to plan and implement a hospital-based outpatient immunization clinic focused on raising adult vaccination rates. Methods: The immunization clinic planning and implementation team includes the hospital executive for business development, a lead physician champion, inpatient and outpatient pharmacy representation, and communication team members. The planning process included three phases and was followed by a pilot to refine the process before disseminating marketing and promotional materials. The immunization clinic was established within the outpatient pavilion on the West Penn Hospital campus. All preventative vaccines are available with the exception of travel immunizations. A short survey will be administered to patients after they are vaccinated, assessing their view on immunizations as it relates to their overall health and how they were referred to the service. Discussion/Conclusion: After the initial pilot, data will be collected to reflect patient volume, revenue, overall satisfaction, and vaccines administered. When patient volume increases, the next steps will be to compare the group that was immunized to a comparable control and evaluate differences in health outcomes including emergency department visits, hospitalizations, other measures of morbidity, and mortality