Drake University recently received a grant from the pharmaceutical company Pfizer for a program that will aim to increase adult vaccination rates.
Thanks to Pfizer’s support, Drake University’s College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (CPHS)—in collaboration with UnityPoint Health Des Moines—will implement a real-time, on-site vaccination reconciliation and patient education program in two UnityPoint Health urgent care clinics.
Last spring, Drake and UnityPoint submitted a proposal to Pfizer with the intention of creating a program to improve adult vaccination rates in high risk, urgent care populations. The proposal was accepted this summer, allowing the program to officially launch this academic year.
“Our faculty proposed engaging pharmacy students in counseling patients on vaccinations and answering their questions,” says Carrie Koenigsfeld, professor of pharmacy practice at Drake. “The grant will allow us to provide a novel opportunity for our students to be actively involved in helping improve preventative care in the Des Moines area.”
Second and third year Drake pharmacy students will be placed in the intervention clinics and will review scheduled and/or walk-in patients’ eligibility for the pneumococcal vaccine. If qualified, they will discuss the importance of the vaccination, answer questions, and offer to have a clinic staff member administer the vaccine during the visit. These students will record administered vaccinations, declined vaccinations, and the reason for refusal.
If successful, the project’s model could be replicated in three other urgent care clinics with the possibility of expanding to UnityPoint’s statewide system of 22 urgent care clinics.
UnityPoint was awarded $258,404 and Drake’s CPHS was awarded $180,00 for the project, which includes salary support for two co-investigator faculty positions plus $39,375 in indirect costs.
For more information contact, Nic Lehman at 515-271-2572 or Carrie Koenigsfeld at 515-271-4918.