The fourth Covid Inquiry report (vaccines and therapeutics) has recommended that during future health emergencies, the community pharmacies should be involved during the initial stages.
The report observed, "In a future pandemic, vaccine deployment planners should use community pharmacies at an earlier stage, unless there are clear logistical or operational barriers to doing so.
"This will be especially effective in areas likely to have lower vaccine uptake and where travel may be a barrier to vaccine access, including, for example, areas of high deprivation."
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the community pharmacies were involved only during Phases 2 and 3 of the vaccine deployment programme.
"The service specifications restricting the involvement of pharmacies in the vaccine deployment programme were gradually relaxed for Phases 2 and 3, and expressions of interest from new, smaller pharmacies were actively sought during the spring of 2021. Community pharmacies played a greater role in Phases 2 and 3.
"Ultimately, 1,500 community pharmacy-led vaccination sites were established by the end of 2021 in England and were responsible for 20 percent of all Covid-19 vaccinations during the first year of rollout."
During the inquiry hearing, the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) had expressed concern that pharmacies were underutilised, particularly in England, in the early stages of vaccine rollout.
40 million vaccinations
Commenting on the report, NPA chief executive Henry Gregg said, “This report shows that pharmacies helped save hundreds of thousands of lives by delivering 40 million vaccinations at the height of the Covid pandemic.
“But this report suggests that many more people – particularly in deprived areas - could have been helped if the Government had turned to the pharmacy network earlier.
"The Government could help tackle a wave of vaccine hesitancy that has surged after the pandemic by allowing pharmacies to roll out more vaccination services to patients, particularly in areas where uptake is lower.
“Around 1,000 pharmacies have been forced to close for good because of underfunding since the pandemic. The Government is playing with people’s lives if it does not ensure there is a strong pharmacy network to improve people’s health today and is there ready for the inevitable health crises of the future.”
