Community Pharmacy's Growing Role in Immunizations and Patient Trust

In an interview with Pharmacy Times, Jennifer Griffin, PharmD, MS, clinical pharmacist for Harps Food Stores, discussed the expanding role of community pharmacists in immunization delivery and patient education, emphasizing how pharmacists are uniquely positioned to combat vaccine misinformation while addressing a growing gap in health care access.

Griffin noted that misinformation—whether from social media, news outlets, or word of mouth—remains a persistent challenge across medicine, and pharmacists are frequently the first point of contact when patients have questions or concerns about a medication or vaccine. She stressed that even when a patient's concern seems minor or repetitive to a busy pharmacist, it should never be dismissed, since community pharmacists occupy a trusted, accessible role that allows them to meaningfully shape patient understanding. Each of these interactions, she explained, reinforces the broader value pharmacists bring beyond dispensing medications.

Griffin pointed to the COVID-19 pandemic as a turning point that normalized pharmacy-based vaccination and demonstrated pharmacists' capacity to meet large-scale public health needs, citing that roughly 90% of Americans live within 5 miles of a community pharmacy. That momentum, she said, has helped drive an expanded scope of practice that now includes services such as vaccination, strep and flu testing, and oral contraceptive prescribing.

Looking ahead, Griffin highlighted findings from an Association of American Medical Colleges report projecting that 42% of practicing physicians will reach retirement age within the next decade, coinciding with a rapidly aging population and rising demand for care. She suggested this looming access gap represents a significant opportunity for pharmacists to further establish themselves as a primary point of care within their communities.