The NSW Government has announced that from January NSW community pharmacists will be able to administer a wider range of vaccinations.
The scope of pharmacist-administered vaccinations will be expanded to include measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (dTpa), in addition to the influenza vaccine.
At the same time, the minimum age of patients who can be vaccinated by trained pharmacists will be reduced from 18 to 16 years.
NSW Guild President David Heffernan said: “We congratulate Health Minister Brad Hazzard and Deputy Premier John Barilaro on this very sensible and beneficial extension of pharmacist-administered vaccination.
“All over NSW, patients will benefit from the convenience of being able to obtain these vaccination services from trained local pharmacists. The community as a whole will benefit from better herd immunity, especially in areas where access to a General Practitioner may be limited.
“The inclusion of the whooping cough vaccine is especially beneficial for grandparents, carers of young children and partners of pregnant women, ahead of having contact with newborn infants,” said Mr Heffernan.
The move brings NSW into line with Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory in terms of the range of vaccines that can be administered by pharmacists.
