Pharmacists in British Columbia are uniquely positioned to lead improvements in pneumococcal vaccination rates. This interactive session will explore how pharmacists can optimize their expanding immunization scope, identify and counsel high-risk patients, and confidently navigate recent changes to the BC pneumococcal program. Participants will learn practical strategies to review vaccination histories, address program nuances, and implement pharmacist-owned vaccination services. By the end of the session, attendees will leave with an actionable playbook to enhance their role as immunization leaders—empowering them to increase pneumococcal vaccine uptake and improve patient and public health outcomes across BC.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

1. Summarize the recent updates to the BC pneumococcal immunization program and apply these changes to patient care decisions within their pharmacy practice.

2. Identify high-risk adult patient populations eligible for pneumococcal vaccination and develop tailored communication strategies to recommend appropriate vaccines.

3. Implement effective processes for verifying prior vaccination history and integrating pneumococcal vaccination into routine pharmacy workflow 

4. Demonstrate ownership of immunization services by designing a pharmacist-led approach to optimize vaccine uptake and improve population-level coverage rates.

Sponsored by Pfizer