PSA welcomes first pharmacist-led vaccine pharmacovigilance system

The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) welcomes the new pharmacist-led pharmacovigilance system that will monitor potential adverse events following vaccination with the Moderna Spikevax vaccine.

 

The University of Western Australia and MedAdvisor are a working together to deliver a real-time, pharmacovigilance monitoring system that will provide critical safety data on the Moderna vaccine. This system will feed information into Australia’s national vaccine safety surveillance program, AusVaxSafety – a program that is supported by pharmacists across the country.

 

This is the first pharmacist-led pharmacovigilance system, and around one hundred pharmacies will be participating. The system actively follows up with patients who have received the Moderna vaccine in the days following vaccination, providing real-time insight into potential adverse events that may have occurred as a result of immunisation. This pharmacy-based system will allow government and industry to better monitor and respond to potential adverse effect signals from the Moderna vaccine.

 

Dr Fei Sim, PSA Board Member and Chair of the Contemporary Community Pharmacy Practice Community of Specialty Interest, expressed her support for the system and explained why this is so important for the community and the profession.

 

“As a practising pharmacist immuniser and pharmacy owner, I am very pleased that such a system has been developed, and that this is the first system to be implemented by pharmacists. Local pharmacists have administered over half a million COVID-19 vaccinations so far, and are having conversations with their patients on a daily basis.

 

“This system will help ensure that pharmacists and their patients are equipped with the most accurate, reliable, and up-to-date safety information – and will play a significant role in addressing any remaining hesitancy in our community.

 

“Where other pharmacovigilance systems – such as those used for the AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines – have largely been implemented by General Practice and vaccination hubs, this is the first system to be solely implemented by pharmacists. This reinforces the crucial role that pharmacists play as part of Australia’s immunisation workforce, and as custodians of medicine safety,” Dr Sim said.

 

PSA looks forward to the rollout of the Moderna vaccine and is dedicated to supporting pharmacists in delivering all COVID-19 vaccines both safely and effectively to the public.

 

 

 

Media contact: PSA media 0424 777 463