The Role of Pharmacists in Counteracting Vaccine Hesitancy: Effectiveness of the 2019 Carnia Project in Improving Adherence to Influenza Vaccination among Target Population.

Vaccine hesitancy has been included among the top ten threats to global health by the World Health Organization. Pharmacists can play a pivotal role in removing the individual barrier to vaccination, because of the relationship of trust they have with citizens and their ease of access. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of a pharmacy-based intervention to support the 2019 influenza vaccination campaign conducted in the Carnia district through one-to-one counseling. We analyzed data collected by pharmacists between 22 October 2019 and 20 January 2020, and trends in vaccination adherence in the context of the Local Health Authority and the entire province of Udine since 2016. The results showed that 77.2% of people who had not received an influenza vaccination in the previous year changed their minds about vaccination after receiving counseling. The pharmacy-based intervention improved influenza vaccination adherence in the target district (+13.4%), even when compared to the neighboring district of Gemona or considering the data in the broader local and provincial context, and this effect was particularly pronounced among those aged 65 to 74 years (p < 0.01). Considering these findings, pharmacies should be more effectively involved in the provision of public health services aimed at improving accessibility, timeliness, and equity.

Major complications have an impact on total annual medical cost of diabetes: results of a database analysis.

BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a common, chronic, and costly disease, and its prevalence is increasing in major industrialized countries. Diabetes has indeed a high social impact mainly because of its chronic complications. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to analyze the direct medical costs attributable to Type 2 diabetes mellitus and its determinants, as assessed in a diabetologic center (DC) in Italy. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective longitudinal cost of care study; Type 2 diabetic patients who visited between January 2001 and August 2002 were randomly selected from the database of the DC of Portogruaro. Cost data collected included hospitalizations, visits, diagnostics, and pharmacological therapies and were quantified and analyzed in the perspective of the National Health Service (NHS). RESULTS: Two hundred ninety-nine diabetic patients were extracted, with a mean/patient follow up of 476 days. Mean age was 67.5 years and males represented 67.2% of the sample. The average annual health care cost was found to be euro1909.67 per patient; pharmacological therapies accounted for the greatest proportion of direct medical costs (52%), followed by hospitalization (28%) and diagnostic exams (11%). Annual costs increased with the number of diabetes related comorbidities, from euro1039 to 3141 per patient in participants with none or more than two complications, respectively. CONCLUSION: Long-term complications carry a considerable impact on total annual medical cost. Our study demonstrates that an increase in the number of comorbidities is directly associated with an increase of Type 2 diabetes cost. Strategies aimed at preventing the onset of diabetic complications are likely to reduce medical costs in the long run, while improving patients' health.