title: Who uses pharmacy for flu vaccinations? Population profiling through a UK pharmacy chain.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There is a need to increase influenza vaccination rates in England particularly among those who are under 65 years of age and at-risk because of other conditions and treatments.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To understand the profile of people accessing flu vaccination services within a large pharmacy chain.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pharmacists requested people who had been vaccinated in 2014/15 to complete a questionnaire. Data was captured electronically on vaccine delivery levels across 1201 pharmacies. Deprivation profiles were calculated using the Carstairs index.
  
  
  RESULTS
  1741 patients from a total of 55 pharmacies completed the survey. Convenience and accessibility remain the key reasons for attending pharmacy. Pharmacy services are accessed by people from all postcode areas, including some from the most deprived localities.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Pharmacy flu vaccination services complement those provided by general practitioners to help improve overall coverage and vaccination rates for patients in at-risk groups. These services are highly accessed by patients from all socio demographic areas, and seem to be particularly attractive to carers, frontline healthcare workers, and those of working age.
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG72RD, UK. Claire.anderson@nottingham.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.affiliation: Boots UK, Nottingham, UK.
authors.forename: Tracey
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Thornley
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003157:Community Pharmacy Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D007252:Influenza Vaccines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013222:State Medicine / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology; D014611:Vaccination / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D007252:Influenza Vaccines
keywords: Access; Community pharmacy; Deprivation; Immunization; Influenza; Risk groups; United Kingdom; Vaccination
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