Alyssa Marie P Hizon
University of Santo Tomas, Philippines
Title: Perception of filipino community pharmacists in manila on pharmacy-based immunization program
Biography
Biography: Alyssa Marie P Hizon
Abstract
Immunization is one of the paramount achievements in public health during the 20th century (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Increasing cases of vaccine-preventable diseases and low vaccination rates had led the pharmacists in other countries to expand their roles in the administration of vaccines. In the Philippines, vaccine-preventable diseases continue to escalate. Moreover, vaccination among adults remains to be uncovered in the Expanded Program on Immunization of the Department of Health (Robles, 2015). Thus, the Philippine Pharmacists’ Association and Food and Drug Administration plan to implement a program authorizing FDA-trained community pharmacists to administer vaccines. This study aimed to describe the perceptions of the selected Filipino community pharmacists in Manila regarding the administration of adult vaccines. A total of 300 questionnaires were distributed to licensed community pharmacists and a response rate of 87.67% was obtained. A 5-point Likert scale was used to measure their perception in each category. The collected data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 19. Results showed that more than half (69%) supported the pharmacy-based immunization program. Most community pharmacists agreed on the statements regarding the competence of the pharmacist to immunize (mean = 4.19 + 0.564), the increased accessibility of vaccinations to the community (mean= 4.10 + 0.582), the positive effects of the program to their professional services (mean = 3.71 + 0.535) and the readiness of their pharmacy (mean= 3.72 + 0.793) to adapt the program. In conclusion, community pharmacists conveyed a high acceptance level towards pharmacy-based immunization program.