Abstract
Pharmacists in health systems involved with immunizations have used their practice settings to become advocates for immunization and increase their responsibilities in the public health monarchy. Administering vaccines to patients and health care workers is enabling some health-system pharmacists to assume a prominent role in public health. Pharmacists have noticed that immunization needs were not being met and, through their advocacy, increased the numbers of patients and employees of health systems who have been vaccinated.
Highlights
A vaccine is a preparation of suspensions of killed or attenuated microorganisms, or products or derivatives of microorganisms, which are intended to produce immunity to a specific disease by stimulating the production of antibodies
According to the latest survey of American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), the percentage of organizations in which pharmacists regularly perform immunization decreased from 24% in 1999 to 19% in 2001
Immunizations are important in protecting patients from developing and dying from vaccine-preventable diseases, and in order to be successful, a team effort is required for all health care professionals to increase immunizations
Summary
A vaccine is a preparation of suspensions of killed or attenuated microorganisms, or products or derivatives of microorganisms, which are intended to produce immunity to a specific disease by stimulating the production of antibodies. The word ‘vaccine’ is derivative from the Latin word vaccinus, meaning “pertaining to cows” and originates since a method developed by Edward Jenner in 1796, in which he scraped the scabs from cowpox lesions on a milkmaid’s hand into a cut on a young boy’s skin, which resulted in the boy’s immunity to smallpox. This breakthrough initiated the vaccine age, even though approximately a century has passed previous to the vaccine that protected against rabies was introduced. Vaccines are considered to be a safe, cost-effective, and efficient means of preventing illness, disability, and death from certain infectious diseases [1,2,3,4,5,6,7]
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