Nada A Alsaleh

Abstract

Influenza is a common cause of hospital admission and considers a major problem worldwide. Although several individuals recover without major complications, the flu virus is responsible for substantially reduced productivity and a high economic burden. Given the availability of many vaccines worldwide for a wide range of infectious diseases, vaccinations are still not fully utilized. Traditional vaccination service includes family physicians and nurses; nevertheless, community pharmacist-led flu vaccination has become more commonly used to increase vaccination coverage. There are several examples worldwide where community pharmacies take part in the flu vaccination services. These examples consider a model for other countries to initiate a community pharmacist-led flu vaccination service. This review aims to demonstrate the success of community pharmacy flu vaccination service and its impact on raising vaccination rates. Experiences of some countries provide evidence of the benefit to both the patient and the healthcare system.