The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia is backing a plan announced recently by the NSW Labor Party to increase the range of vaccinations available for administration by pharmacists in the state.
The PSA says it continues to strongly support the role of pharmacists as authorised immunisers in reducing the impact of vaccine-preventable illness in Australian communities.
“The [ALP] initiative will significantly increase the immunisation rate, and by increasing herd immunity, it will have a very positive effect on the health of people in NSW,” PSA NSW President Professor Peter Carroll said.
“PSA believes Australians should be able to access pharmacist-administered vaccinations regardless of which state they live in.
“That’s why this initiative is very welcome and timely, as it will allow NSW to ‘catch up’ with other states where pharmacists can already administer measles, mumps and rubella, and diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccines.”
Professor Carroll says Australian pharmacists have been administering vaccines safely and effectively since 2014 and across all states and territories since 2016.
He adds that pharmacists are playing a vital role in promoting and providing education on immunisation, and in reducing the impact of vaccine-preventable disease by increasing access to immunisation in communities, and particularly to individuals who previously would not have been vaccinated.
“The administration of vaccines by pharmacists complements the excellent work done by GPs, and increases the immunisation rate within the community by vaccinating people who don’t regularly visit a GP, or don’t have a GP,” Professor Carroll said.
