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Availability And Storage Of Vaccines In Community Pharmacies
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There is abundant evidence
from literature with data supporting the role and impact of community
pharmacists as immunizers. Community pharmacy-based immunization
services are a cost-effective, convenient, and accessible alternative
for the public to receive vaccinations (Levi, et al., 2010). As stated
earlier, one of the greatest barriers to vaccinations is accessibility.
With pharmacists as immunizers, pharmacists are able to immediately act
on their recommendations (administer the patient the vaccine) without
referring the patient elsewhere, where the patient may not follow
through or forget. With increased accessibility, pharmacists have helped
to improve immunization rates, bring patients up-to-date on
vaccinations, and reach those who may not otherwise have an opportunity
to be vaccinated (Goad, 2013; Warner, et al., 2013; Hung, et al., 2007).
1.6 Problem Statement
More
than 40,000 to 50,000 adult and child death could have been prevented
annually in Nigeria if there was a successful routine immunization for
certain preventable diseases of which include measles, herpes zoster,
tetanus and a host of others (Abdhuraheem, et al., 2011). The federal
government and donor agencies make so much effort and spend close to 50
billion dollars annually in the supply chain of vaccines but when these
monies are spent and the purpose for which they are spent are not
achieved due to a reduced potency of such vaccines or due to inadequate
manpower for vaccine delivery to the target population.It can be said to
be an investment in futility. The underutilization of these widely
available vaccines has created an opportunity for pharmacists to play a
role in improving immunization rates and thus advancing public health.
Community pharmacy-based vaccination services will go a long way to
increasing the number of immunization providers and the number of sites
where patients can receive immunizations. It is thus important to
understand the current role of community pharmacy-based immunization in
Delta state as well as to assess the level of availability of such
vaccines in community pharmacies and the storage mechanisms and
facilities available to them to ensure that the cold chain vaccine
delivery process is maintained.
1.7 Justification of Study
The
justification of these study sterns from the fact that with the erratic
power supply in Nigeria, there is a high level of possibility for
vaccines to lose their potency before they are delivered to the target
population. For immunization to remain relevant, immunization providers
must device means of maintaining the recommended storage conditions for
vaccines from the transport to storage and eventual delivery to
patients. This study remains important as vaccine storage is one
important factor that could influence the potency level of vaccines as
well as the success of any immunization programme. Also, availability of
vaccines in community pharmacies is a crucial factor in cases of
envenomation by rodents, snakes and other venomous creatures. It is also
important in uptake of vaccines by adults who may be susceptible
vaccine preventable diseases. It is therefore important to find out what
the actual situation is in relation to availability and storage
facilities for vaccines. Bearing this in mind, a thorough search across
literature reveals a high level of the involvement of community
pharmacists in routine immunizations in developed countries like USA,
Canada, UK and Australia. However, there is limited literature on the
vaccine storage practices as well as the involvement of community
pharmacists in Nigeria in immunization programmes of which this study
hopes to bridge the existing gap.
1.8 Research Objectives
The objective of this research is to access availability and storage of vaccines in community Pharmacies in Delta state.
Specific Objectives
The specific objectives of this study are outlined as follows;
To determine the availability of childhood vaccines in Community pharmacies.
To determine the availability of adult vaccines in Community pharmacies.
To determine availability and adequacy of vaccine storage facilities in Community pharmacies
To explore variables that affect vaccine availability and storage in Delta state.
To explore variables that affects the involvement of community pharmacists in routine vaccination in Delta State.
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