Recently, Alberta Health flagged a number of patients in Netcare who received a dose of the Pneumococcal 20-valent Conjugate Vaccine or Prevnar 20TM (Pneu-C20) sooner than the required one-year interval after receiving a Pneumo-P dose. Pharmacy teams who administered a dose to one of the affected patients were contacted by the Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH), Dr. Mark Joffe, to inform them of this error and instruct them to contact Alberta Health to obtain the patient information and instructions on how to proceed. The CMOH has determined that patients who were provided a dose before the required one-year interval are not adequately protected by the vaccine and further action is required.
A number of pharmacies did not initially respond to the CMOH’s request and ACP would like to remind regulated members to carefully monitor all email communications regarding vaccines and immunizations.
ACP has also heard reports of the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine being administered too soon after a COVID-19 vaccination. In these instances, pharmacists are reminded that they must ensure that the interval between these two vaccines is greater than 14 days.
Pharmacists are reminded to familiarize themselves with vaccine spacing requirements and carefully review the dates of vaccine administration to ensure the spacing is appropriate. Inappropriate spacing may negatively impact effectiveness of the vaccine or lead to adverse effects.
More information about the Pneu-C20 vaccine can be found in the Alberta Blue Cross Benefact #1185.
