Vaccination cheat sheet and flowchart

The scope of pharmacy practice is expanding dynamically in Canada. Vaccinations are one area where community pharmacists are able to play an active role not only in administering vaccines, but also in driving patient awareness and decisions regarding immunization.

We were tasked with creating an easy-to-use vaccine reference guide for community pharmacists that would also help them ask the right questions and drive proactive conversations with patients about immunization.

Digital resources are extremely flexible and the optimal choice in many cases, but in this case printed, laminated cheatsheets were a better fit. Pharmacists working behind the coiunter often don't all have access to one of the computers, and having a printed sheet handy can be easier to use. Through conversations with pharmacists we recognized this preference, and opted to use a printed format.

We worked together with subject matter experts to compile relevant information, and worked to transform that information into an easily readable, tidy format. To keep printed content concise we added only essential information, introducing links with QR codes to allow pharmacists to access additional information easily. 

These cheat sheets were delivered to pharmacies throughout Canada to aid pharmacists in the important work they do in the field of immunization. We followed up with just under 100 stores to gather quick online feedback and received an approval rating of 96% for the format, and 91% for the content.