Services Database London Pharmacy Vaccination Service 2014-15 (Across the London Area – 13 LPCs Involved)

Please note this service is commissioned across London by the London Area Team. Therefore, the following LPCs have the same vaccination service in their areas:

• Barnet, Enfield & Haringey LPC
• Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich LPC
• Brent and Harrow LPC
• Camden and Islington LPC
• City and Hackney LPC
• Croydon LPC
• Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow LPC
• Hillingdon LPC
• Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster LPC
• Kingston, Richmond and Twickenham LPC
• Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham LPC
• North East London LPC
• Sutton, Merton and Wandsworth LPC

The service has only been added onto the Services Database under this entry to avoid duplication.

Please note, this service also allows pharmacists to provide the pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccination.

Influenza vaccination

The following groups of persons are able to have the influenza vaccine administered by a pharmacist under Patient Group Direction (PGD):

• people aged 65 years or over (including those becoming age 65 years by 31 March 2015);
• all pregnant women (including those women who become pregnant during the flu season);
• people from 2 years of age with a serious medical condition such as:
  • chronic (long-term) respiratory disease, such as severe asthma, chronic; obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or bronchitis;
  • chronic heart disease, such as heart failure;
  • chronic kidney disease at stage three, four or 5;
  • chronic liver disease;
  • chronic neurological disease, such as Parkinson’s disease or motor neurone disease;
  • diabetes;
  • splenic dysfunction;
  • a weakened immune system due to disease (such as HIV/AIDS) or treatment (such as cancer treatment);
•  when specifically authorised to do so by NHS England, people living in long-stay residential care homes or other long-stay care facilities where rapid spread is likely to follow introduction of infection and cause high morbidity and mortality;
• people who are in receipt of a carer’s allowance, or those who are the main carer of an older or disabled person whose welfare may be at risk if the carer falls ill;
• household contacts of immunocompromised individuals, specifically individuals who expect to share living accommodation on most days over the winter and therefore for whom continuing close contact is unavoidable; and
• front-line health care workers.

In addition to the above, seasonal flu immunisation can be administered (via presentation of an appropriate NHSE voucher) to all the following staff cohorts in order to supplement the Green Book and in efforts to break the chain of infectious disease in London:

• NHS England staff – as Flu Champions and clinical leadership;
• Public Health England staff – as Flu Champions and clinical leadership;
• prison staff; and
• special schools staff – to have synergy with the child flu pilots in all special schools.

Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccination
The people eligible for vaccination under this service are also outlined below:

•  people aged 65 years and over;
• chronic respiratory disease aged 2 to 64 years;
• chronic heart disease aged 2 to 64 years;
• chronic kidney disease aged 2 to 64 years;
• chronic liver disease aged 2 to 64 years;
• diabetes aged 2 to 64 years;
• immunosuppression & asplenia or dysfunction of the spleen aged 2 to 64 years; and
• individuals with cochlear implants aged 2 to 64 years.

To be eligible to participate in the NHS England London Region Pharmacy Vaccination Service, ALL pharmacists must complete the Declaration of Competence (DoC) for Vaccination Services (the London Service). This includes signing and retaining the certificate entitled “Personal Declaration of Qualifications and Competence to deliver a Vaccination service”. The DoC will be valid for three years. However, if changes are made to the service in future years – especially if additional vaccinations are added – there may be a requirement to update training and competencies.

As part of the DoC, pharmacists will be required to complete and pass the Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education (CPPE) e-assessments on immunisations. The Part 1 assessment covers vaccination procedures, vaccine storage and anaphylaxis management as well as administration of inactivated influenza vaccine. The Part 2 assessment covers the extended range of vaccines that NHS England London Region intends to commission (ie live influenza vaccine, pertussis and shingles). Successful completion of Part 1 is mandatory to provide the service from the 1st September 2014. When the service is extended to include the wider range of vaccinations Part 2 will become mandatory. Service providers will be kept updated on discussions on introducing the extended service.

Training must meet the National Minimum Standards for Immunisation Training and the accompanying Core Curriculum. It must provide pharmacists with the skills necessary for administering all of the vaccines set out in Schedule 1b.

The pharmacist must have completed and passed a recognised Basic Life Support (BLS) training course, for both adults and children from 2 years of age, in the past 12 months, or an approved alternative update training (BLS training must be updated every 3 years); this update can be face to face or via e-learning.

The pharmacist has signed authorised copies of the NHS England PGD for the administration of the 2014/15 included vaccines by community pharmacists. This includes the Core PGD and each vaccine specific PGD.

Pharmacists should maintain clinical knowledge appropriate to their practice by attending relevant study days, courses and making themselves aware of appropriate literature.

The pharmacy contractor must ensure that all members of pharmacy staff are trained on the operation of the scheme and full details will be made available to locum pharmacists.