Johnstone, Kristoffer, Smithson, John, Cooper, Joyce, and Glass, Beverley (2025) Scoping the barriers to influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations from the perspectives of patients with cancer: is there a role for the pharmacist? Journal of Pharmacy Practice and Research, 55 (1). pp. 1-15.

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Abstract

Background: Routine immunisation for influenza and pneumococcal disease has the potential to reduce morbidity and mortality inpatients with cancer.

Aim: This scoping review aims to determine barriers to influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations from the perspective of patients with cancer and to discuss the potential role of the pharmacist in impacting these barriers.

Design: A systematic search of seven databases, including MEDLINE (Ovid), Cochrane Library, Informit (health), PubMed, and CINAHL (complete), from database inception to 6 June 2023 was conducted. Search terms included: ’cancer’, ’vaccination’, ’influenza’, ’pneumococcal’, and ’barrier’. Articles published in English that describe barriers to receiving vaccinations from the perspectives of patients with cancers were included. Barriers were thematically analysed.

Results: Twenty-five articles met the inclusion criteria. Barriers identified in the literature were analysed into three key themes: healthcare professionals, patients, and healthcare system barriers. A key healthcare professional barrier was lack of recommendations from the treating oncologist or haematologist. Patient barriers included lack of information about the indication for vaccination as part of patients’ cancer treatment and fear of side effects. Access to vaccination services was reported as a healthcare system barrier.

Conclusion: This scoping review highlights the significant barriers to influenza and pneumococcal vaccination according to patients with cancer. Healthcare professionals, patients, and health systems were identified as key barriers. Enablers to improve vaccination rates include patient education, increased healthcare professional vaccine recommendations, and improved access. Although pharma-cists have a potential role to play in addressing these barriers, the feasibility and impact of their involvement requires further research

Item ID:	84162
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	2055-2335
Keywords:	cancer, immunisation, pneumococcal, influenza, barriers, enablers, pharmacist, vaccine
Copyright Information:	© 2024 The Author(s). Journal of Pharmacy Practice and Research published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Date Deposited:	15 Apr 2025 23:20
FoR Codes:	32 BIOMEDICAL AND CLINICAL SCIENCES > 3214 Pharmacology and pharmaceutical sciences > 321403 Clinical pharmacy and pharmacy practice @ 100%
SEO Codes:	20 HEALTH > 2001 Clinical health > 200104 Prevention of human diseases and conditions @ 100%
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