Vaccine Equity

FIP’s vaccine equity programme is centred around advancing vaccine equity and life-course immunisation. This programme is dedicated to advocating for the pivotal role of pharmacy in mitigating vaccine inequities and expanding access to essential immunisation services. With a strong foundation in its ongoing efforts in the vaccination realm, FIP aims to propel the concept of pharmacy-based life-course immunisation to the forefront.

Programme objectives:

Advocate for the role of pharmacy in reducing vaccine inequities and widening access to immunisation.
Build on existing FIP work on vaccination to enable pharmacy-based life-course immunisation.
Provide members with tools and resources to enable policy transformation.

Publications
Events/Webinars

	Advancing pharmacy practices in vaccination: Unlocking vaccine confidence Report from a FIP insight board 2024 This report summarizes insights from an FIP discussion on strategies to build vaccine confidence and the role of pharmacists in enhancing vaccine acceptance. The report highlights effective communication, health literacy, stakeholder collaboration, media engagement, and lessons from COVID-19.
	Advancing pharmacy practices in vaccination: Preparing for winter Report from a FIP insight board 2024 This report summarizes key insights from an FIP insight board discussion on strategies for pharmacies to address the increased risk of flu and other communicable diseases during the winter months.
	Advancing pharmacy practices in vaccination: Reaching at-risk and vulnerable groups Report from a FIP insight board 2024 This report summarizes key insights from an FIP insight board discussion on strategies to deliver vaccines to at-risk and vulnerable populations and the role of pharmacists in serving these groups.
	Pandemic Preparedness, Response and Recovery: Lessons Learnt for Global Pharmacy 2023 The key learnings for pharmacy are presented in this report in six sections focusing on lessons from country leadership, system transformation, science and innovation, pharmaceutical practice, workforce and education, and life-course immunisation.
	Supporting life-course immunisation through pharmacy-based vaccination: enabling equity, access and sustainability: A toolkit for pharmacists 2023 This toolkit aims to enable equity, access, and sustainability of life-course immunisation through pharmacy-based vaccination and it is a valuable resource for pharmacists looking to expand their role in supporting immunisation efforts and improving public health outcomes.
	Vaccination: Benefits beyond specific disease prevention Summaries from the FIP digital events programme 2023 This report summarizes key insights from a series of digital events on the importance of vaccination beyond just preventing illness. The report highlights the role of pharmacists in vaccination efforts, the need for equitable access to vaccines across all stages of life, and the importance of learning from past experiences like the COVID-19 pandemic to build on efforts and promote the understanding and benefits of vaccination for public health
	Advocating expansion of the pharmacist's role in immunsation: A focus on diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis booster, COVID-19 and meningitis vaccinations 2022 This report aims to support pharmacists' organizations worldwide in claiming or expanding their role in immunisation and to accelerate policy development and transformation in the area of immunisation and provides guidance on how pharmacists can advocate for the expansion of their role in immunisation, including how to engage with patients, policymakers, and other healthcare professionals.
	Vaccination of special-risk groups: A toolkit for pharmacists 2022 This toolkit not only serves the goal of highlighting the important role that pharmacists can play in improving vaccination coverage rates among special-risk groups, but also to summarise key information, practice guidelines and additional resources to support this role in a very practical manner. This includes a brief introduction of why each group has a higher risk of harm from vaccine-preventable diseases, which vaccines are particularly recommended for that group, what advice pharmacists may provide to individuals they identify from those groups and a practical case study that may support conversations.
	Building vaccine confidence and communicating vaccine value - A toolkit for pharmacists 2021 This toolkit is designed to empower pharmacists with the knowledge and tools necessary to build trust in vaccines among their teams, patients, and communities. It provides key resources for vaccine education, addressing misinformation, and advocating for patient vaccination. The toolkit includes infographics, videos, and interactive content to explain the importance of vaccines, along with conversation starters and strategies for engaging with vaccine-hesitant individuals. It also emphasises the role of healthcare professionals in promoting health equity and ensuring culturally safe communication. This resource is a comprehensive guide for pharmacists to enhance vaccine confidence and support public health initiatives.
	Give it a shot: Expanding immunisation coverage through pharmacists 2020 FIP aims to further demonstrate the commitment and impact of pharmacists in increasing vaccination coverage and uptake through a multitude of roles, including vaccine administration.

	Enabling life-course immunisation through pharmacy-based vaccination: Launch of a new FIP Pandemic Preparedness report 16 August 2023 This event sought to derive key lessons, recommendations and considerations for the future in another report, “Pandemic Preparedness, Response and Recovery: Lessons Learnt for Global Pharmacy”
	Enabling life-course immunisation through pharmacy-based vaccination: Launch of a new FIP policy toolkit 26 July 2023 This event is delivered as part of a new FIP programme supported by Pfizer, aims to provide our members with approaches and tools for tackling key policy enablers that determine equity, access and sustainability of pharmacy-based life-course immunisation.
	Enabling life-course immunisation through pharmacy-based vaccination: Access to data and vaccination records 2 February 2023 This event is delivered as part of a new FIP programme supported by Pfizer, FIP data shows that pharmacists’ access to patient vaccination records vary widely across countries and regions. Understanding the different models and country experiences is key to wider implementation.
	Vaccination: Benefits beyond specific disease prevention - Part 1 21 August 2023 This webinar – Part 1 - will delve into technical and evidence-based insights on positive downstream effects of vaccines in older adults including that on cardiovascular events and diseases, diabetes or arthritis.
	Vaccination: Benefits beyond specific disease prevention - Part 2 31 August 2023 This webinar – Part 2 - will share contributions, activities, tools that pharmacists lead and utilise to promote healthy aging in the practice setting
	Vaccination: Benefits beyond specific disease prevention - Part 3 13 September 2023 Part 3 will focus on the burden of diseases and the risks and costs of not widening access to vaccination.
	Vaccines & special-risk groups: Pregnant individuals 22 February 2023 Among the different special-risk population groups for vaccine-preventable diseases, people that are pregnant have particular vaccination needs that will be highlighted at this event. Pharmacists can play a role in raising awareness of the importance of vaccination among this population group.
	Vaccines & special-risk groups: Pharmacy teams and all healthcare workers 9 May 2023 Among the different special-risk groups for vaccine-preventable diseases, healthcare professionals are in contact with multiple patients daily and are therefore at increased risk of contracting and further spreading vaccine-preventable diseases.
	Enabling life-course immunisation through pharmacy-based vaccination: Regulations and prescribing 18 January 2023 This event is delivered as part of a new FIP programme supported by Pfizer, which aims to provide FIP members with approaches and tools for tackling key policy enablers that determine equity, access and sustainability of pharmacy-based life-course immunisation. It will feature a number of pharmacy leadership bodies describing how pharmacy-based vaccination, including prescribing, is regulated in their countries.
	Vaccines & special-risk groups: Chronic Respiratory Conditions 29 June 2022 Among the different special-risk population groups, people living with chronic respiratory conditions have specific vaccination needs that will be discussed in this event.
	Vaccines & special-risk groups: Cardiovascular diseases 21 July 2022 Among the different special-risk population groups, people living with cardiovascular diseases have particular vaccination needs that will be highlighted in this event.
	Vaccines & special-risk groups: Older adults 30 September 2022 Among different special-risk population groups, older adults have specific vaccination needs that will be discussed in this event.
	Vaccines & special-risk groups: Diabetes 14 November 2022 Among the different special-risk groups for vaccine-preventable diseases, people living with diabetes have particular vaccination needs that will be highlighted in this event.
	Vaccines & special-risk groups: roundtable summit 7 December 2022 The final event in the FIP series focuses on the vaccination needs of special-risk population groups through an intersectoral roundtable. In addition, launching a summary publication and a series of short videos to support pharmacists' role in raising awareness and building confidence in vaccines and in promoting convenient access to vaccinations.
	Sustainable and equitable access to vaccines: Establishing priorities and setting policies in the African region 4 November 2021 This event focuses on the regional needs and drivers for transforming vaccination in the African region. This involves identifying priorities in the region’s countries with regards to equity and access to vaccinations. Barriers and challenges and regional needs in relation to policy setting will also be discussed.
	Sustainable and equitable access to vaccines: Establishing priorities and setting policies in the Western Pacific region 28 October 2021 This event focuses on the regional needs and drivers for transforming vaccination in the Western Pacific region. This involves identifying priorities in the region’s countries with regards to equity and access to vaccinations. Barriers and challenges and regional needs in relation to policy setting will also be discussed.
	Sustainable and equitable access to vaccines: Establishing priorities and setting policies in the South East Asian region 26 October 2021 This event focuses on the regional needs and drivers for transforming vaccination in the South East Asian region. This involves identifying priorities in the region’s countries with regards to equity and access to vaccinations. Barriers and challenges and regional needs in relation to policy setting will also be discussed.
	Sustainable and equitable access to vaccines: Establishing priorities and setting policies in the European region 14 October 2021 This event focuses on the regional needs and drivers for transforming vaccination in the European region. This involves identifying priorities in the region’s countries with regards to equity and access to vaccinations. Barriers and challenges and regional needs in relation to policy setting will also be discussed.
	Sustainable and equitable access to vaccines: Establishing priorities and setting policies in the Eastern Mediterranean region 7 October 2021 This event focuses on the regional needs and drivers for transforming vaccination in the Eastern Mediterranean region. This involves identifying priorities in the region’s countries with regards to equity and access to vaccinations. Barriers and challenges and regional needs in relation to policy setting will also be discussed.
	Sustainable and equitable access to vaccines: Establishing priorities and setting policies in the Americas region 30 September 2021 This event focuses on the regional needs and drivers for transforming vaccination in the Americas. This involves identifying priorities in the region’s countries with regards to equity and access to vaccinations. Barriers and challenges and regional needs in relation to policy setting will also be discussed.
	Working together across systems to transform vaccination policy: working with others in our professions, with other disciplines and agencies to establish sustainable policies 23 September 2021 This event will focus on intra and interprofessional alliances to ensure that we can work together to deliver the areas of policy addressed in this series. Panelists will also discuss working together with other agencies and policymakers to establish sustainable policies on vaccines access and equity, including how pharmacy can be a force of good in supporting vaccinations for all health workers.
	Equity, access & sustainability through life’s ages and stages: Enabling a life course-approach to vaccination 8 July 2021 The panelists in this event will focus on age and explore vaccines equity and access through life’s ages and stages – from childhood (including pregnancy) to later adulthood – from a pharmacy perspective. They will focus on setting out the policy issues and immediate next steps, determining what pharmacy needs to do to singularly affect the most change in this area.
	Introducing the FIP ‘Transforming Vaccination Globally, Regional and Nationally’ 2021: Accelerating equity, access and sustainability through policy development and implementation 17 June 2021 The first episode of the programme will set the stage for the entire programme. This event will revisit the key outcomes of the Transforming Vaccination 2020 programme, specifically focusing on the outcomes relating to shaping policy around equity, access and sustainability and how they are shaping the FIP vaccination agenda for 2021. It will also describe the programme, and outline its key aims and objectives as well as outcomes.
	Enabling life-course immunisation through pharmacy-based vaccination: Service remuneration models 6 December 2022 This event is delivered as part of a new FIP programme supported by Pfizer, which aims to provide our members with approaches and tools for tackling key policy enablers that determine equity, access and sustainability of pharmacy-based life-course immunisation. It will feature a number of pharmacy leadership bodies sharing their remuneration models and journeys for the benefit of policy-enablement everywhere.