Hepatitis Awareness Month: Increased Partnerships, Expanded Pharmacy Role
May is Hepatitis Awareness Month. The CDC recommends that everyone born between 1945-1965 be tested for hepatitis C.
NACDS Provides FDA with Recommendations on Opioid Oversight
NACDS testified this week at a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Opioid Policy Steering Committee public meeting on ways the agency can strengthen its oversight of opioids.
Op-Ed by NACDS, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security Describes Pharmacy’s Role in Preventing Antibiotic Resistance Morning Consult publishes study’s findings on public health priorities
Morning Consult published an op-ed co-authored by Steven C. Anderson, IOM, CAE, president and CEO of NACDS, and Gigi Kwik Gronvall, PhD., senior associate at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week—November 13-19, 2017
This week—-November 13-17-—marks U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) initiative to raise awareness about the growing problem of antimicrobial resistance.
NACDS Attends Influenza Vaccination Event in DC with HHS Secretary Tom Price
NACDS attended the annual Influenza Vaccination Kick-Off news conference sponsored by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today, along with HHS Secretary Tom Price who got a flu shot at the event.
CDC: Pharmacists Are Front Line of Defense against Opioid Abuse
In an ongoing effort to prevent prescription opioid abuse, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a brochure for pharmacists, “Pharmacists: On the Front Lines—Addressing Prescription Opioid Abuse and Overdose.”
…the CDC is urging pharmacists to fully utilize the vital role they play on the front lines of healthcare delivery…
As one of the most accessible healthcare providers in neighborhoods across the nation, the CDC is urging pharmacists to fully utilize the vital role they play on the front lines of healthcare delivery to communicate with patients to help prevent prescription drug abuse.
The brochure provides helpful prompts to start conversations with patients about their medications and covers ways to recognize patterns which could indicate possible opioid abuse. It also encourages a collaborative approach between pharmacists and prescribers to optimize pain management, while preventing opioid abuse, and emphasizes educating patients about the safe use of opioids, including proper use, side effects and refill requirements.
CDC Recognizes Pharmacy Value, Urges Flu Vaccination
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) praised pharmacy’s vital role in healthcare delivery in a letter to pharmacists stating that the agency “recognizes and appreciates the increasingly important role that you play in public health, including vaccinating the public against seasonal influenza and other vaccine-preventable diseases.”
In addition to recognizing the public health contributions of pharmacists to a well-functioning “immunization neighborhood,” the letter provides guidance to pharmacists for the influenza season and calls on pharmacists to assess patients’ overall vaccination needs and implement the Standards for Adult Immunization Practice for vaccinations beyond flu.
NACDS Joins CDC, NFID on Flu Vaccine Social Media Campaign
NACDS is joining the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) to promote the importance of everyone in the U.S. six months and older getting the flu vaccine. The campaign will use the hashtag #FightFlu to raise awareness on social media channels.
Visit the CDC’s #FightFlu website to join the campaign. For more information about flu and flu vaccination, please visit the CDC’s website.
CDC, Pediatrician Group Advise Against Nasal Flu Spray
Citing poor effectiveness, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) do not recommend the nasal flu vaccine spray.
The AAP and CDC recommend that everyone ages six months and older receive a seasonal flu shot during the 2016-17 season…
The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) announced in June that it didn’t recommend the nasal flu vaccine spray, citing studies that found the nasal spray vaccine did not protect against certain strains of the flu virus that were most prominent the past three seasons. The nasal spray vaccine effectiveness among children two through 17 years was three percent in 2015-16, compared with 63 percent for the injected vaccine. In a revised policy statement released this week, the AAP said it supports the CDC’s recommendation not to use the nasal flu vaccine.
The AAP and CDC recommend that everyone ages six months and older receive a seasonal flu shot during the 2016-17 season, noting that vaccination remains the best available preventive measure against the flu.
For updated flu vaccine recommendations for the 2016-2017 season, visit the CDC’s website.
Sharp Decline in Chickenpox Cases Highlights Importance of Vaccination
Recent findings released from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that cases of chickenpox have declined even further since the introduction of a second routine childhood dose of varicella vaccine in 2006.
News of the effective decline in chickenpox cases because of vaccinations bolsters the role pharmacy plays in providing accessible, affordable vaccinations in communities across the country.
The chickenpox vaccine was introduced in 1996, which led to approximately a 90 percent decline in cases of chickenpox, however because of continued outbreaks, the second routine dose of the vaccination was introduced. The CDC report noted an 85 percent decline in chickenpox cases between 2005-2006 (the end of the one-dose varicella vaccination program) to 2013-2014. The largest declines occurred among children and adolescents ages 5-14 years, the age groups most likely to have received a second shot of vaccine to prevent the disease.
The CDC has credited vaccination with preventing four million cases of chickenpox, 9,000 hospitalizations, and 100 deaths each year.
News of the effective decline in chickenpox cases because of vaccinations bolsters the role pharmacy plays in providing accessible, affordable vaccinations in communities across the country.
NACDS continues to advocate for expanded access to pharmacist-administered adolescent vaccinations and recently collaborated with the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) on presenting a webinar, “Vaccines for Preteens and Teens: The Importance of Timely Vaccination for All Adolescents” in August, which coincided with the observance of August as National Immunization Awareness Month. The increased efforts to raise awareness of the importance of timely adolescent vaccinations were spurred by a report released by NFID in February. The report stated: “Retail pharmacies continue to expand their vaccination services and they are valuable partners for improving adolescent vaccination rates.”
NACDS also recently announced the launch of three demonstrations projects that aim to foster healthcare collaboration to increase pharmacy-based immunizations.
Proof of the effectiveness of vaccinations illustrates the pharmacy industry’s contribution to improving patient health and outcomes with preventative, evidence-based efforts.
