Pharmacists to be called upon during flu pandemic
Flu vaccine production will be stepped up if a pandemic strain emerges |
Pharmacists may have a key role to play in administering any new vaccine that becomes available during an influenza pandemic, a Government report confirmed this week.
Pharmacists may also be recruited to treat patients, according to the
UK
Influenza Pandemic Contingency Plan published earlier this week by
the Department of Health.
The report, which was released jointly by Health Secretary John Reid
and England’s chief medical officer, Sir Liam Donaldson, said it
would “explore” these options as part of the health service
response to mass flu vaccine immunisation.
Dr Reid also announced that stockpiles of 14.6 million courses of the
antiviral
oseltamivir (Tamiflu) are being prepared —enough to treat 25 per
cent of the population — in line with World Health Organization
recommendations.
Pharmaceutical company Roche has been contracted to supply 7.3 million
courses by the end of the next financial year with the remainder available
as soon as possible after that date.
The antiviral will not be effective in stopping the spread of any new
flu strain (which is expected to be avian flu). It is, however, likely
to help reduce complications of infection and reduce the severity of
symptoms. But the Government admits that it will take time, possibly
up to eight months following the first outbreak, to develop a suitable
vaccine to beat any new strain of flu.
Professor Donaldson said: “We have already started work which should
help speed up the production of a vaccine, once a pandemic strain of
flu has emerged. The announcement of the procurement of a large stock
of antiviral drugs will give us another potentially valuable counter
measure.”
The Government expects to make use of NHS Direct during any pandemic
and its online version will provide information to help answer the public’s
questions. Regular advice for health professionals, including pharmacists,
will be available on the CMO, DoH and HPA web sites. The DoH will also
rely on its existing information cascade system to communicate with the
NHS and it will lead on the purchase and supply of any vaccine on behalf
of all UK countries, the report confirmed.
The report predicts a pandemic could result in at least 50,000 UK deaths.
The plan, which updates the last one published eight years ago, follows
a warning last week from the World Health Organization of a possible
avian flu pandemic. The WHO urged governments in Asia — which has
so far reported 55 human cases of avian flu of which 42 have been fatal — as
well as governments across the world to invest money in anti-avian flu
measures.
Chiron licence restored Flu vaccine manufacturer Chiron has
had its manufacturing
licence suspension lifted. The Medicines
and Healthcare
products Regulatory Agency
suspended the company’s licence in October last year after it failed
to comply with good manufacturing practice. The company has now met MHRA requirements
and is able to recommence production of Fluvirin.
|
|
The
Pharmaceutical Journal
Acrobat
Reader