Patient’s knowledge and attitudes concerning vaccination and role of the community pharmacist

Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine knowledge and attitudes of pharmacy patients regarding vaccination in pharmacies Methods: A population-based survey was carried out in different locations of Lithuania. 360 patients were interviewed in metropolitan, urban and rural community pharmacies. The survey was carried out using an anonymous questionnaire. The study questionnaire consisted of 22 different type questions: 5 questions about the pharmacy, 9 questions about vaccination, 3 questions about flue and 10 personal questions about the respondent. Results and discussion: Two-thirds of respondents (71%) agreed that vaccines are more beneficial than harmful ; 57.5% stated that it is easy to get vaccinated; only 17.8% of pacients indicated that vaccines are harmful for our immune system. While most of respondents can be characterized as having a positive opinion about vaccination, 20–40% of respondents indicated insufficient knowledge on this issue. The main sources of information on vaccination are physicians (72.96%), television (38.31%), print media (23.66%); only 10.14% paciens stated that main source of information on vaccination is a pharmacist. 49.01% of respondents would agree to get vaccinated in pharmacy, if the pharmacist would be able to do that. Our findings indicate that the most important factor associated with vaccinations in pharmacies is the time, 64.94% of respondents stated that it would take less time to get vaccinatedin pharmacy. Pharmacies can be especially advantageous for people who cannot afford to take time from work, those living in rural areas with no health facilities, and those who live in inner cities where many pharmacies are present. Conclusion: Survey revealed that most of the patients indicated that vaccines are beneficial, but vaccination rate among them is not high enough. People’s visits during store hours give pharmacists many public outreach opportunities to advocate for immunizations and/or to offer immunization services. Almost half of respondents would agree to get vaccinated in community pharmacy, if the pharmacists would able to do that