Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy Among Health Care Workers
Pharmacy Times2021
Oftentimes, when we think of vaccine hesitancy, we think about our patients. However, some health care workers express vaccine hesitancy, too. With several health care systems mandating COVID-19 vaccines, headlines include “New York Hospital to ‘Pause’ Delivering Babies After Staffers Quit Rather Than Get Vaccinated.” Yet, headlines don’t tell the whole story, and the issue of vaccine hesitancy certainly did not begin with the COVID-19 vaccine. How prevalent is vaccine hesitancy among health care workers? What are common reasons for hesitancy? How can we promote vaccine confidence among health care workers? Those are all questions worth answering, as research has found that health care workers who are vaccinated and have positive attitudes about vaccines are more likely to recommend vaccination to their patients and have higher patient rates of vaccination.
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Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP): A Review of Risk Factors and Possible Interventions in Children
Journal of Pediatric Pharmacology and Therapeutics2021
Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) is a serious and devastating, yet poorly understood outcome in epilepsy. This review discusses the current knowledge and understanding of SUDEP in children and adolescents. Established risk factors for SUDEP include history of generalized tonic-clonic seizures and nocturnal seizures. Other proposed risk factors include the use of multiple antiseizure medications and poor medication adherence. Possible prevention strategies for SUDEP include improved medication adherence, surgical interventions, nighttime safety, seizure detection devices, and diet. Pediatric providers have a great opportunity to educate families about SUDEP, assess medication adherence, and provide families with tools to improve medication adherence and learn about SUDEP in children and adolescents with epilepsy. Future research in SUDEP aims to further understand the etiology and risk factors of SUDEP, while developing more intervention strategies to prevent SUDEP.
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Tackling Misconceptions That Result in COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy
Pharmacy Times2021
Because of the consequences of COVID-19 infection, several vaccines were developed and recently granted emergency use authorization (EUA) by the FDA for the prevention of symptomatic infection. However, as public health efforts to conduct mass vaccination begin, vaccine hesitancy and concerns regarding the vaccine continue to limit vaccination efforts. The percentage of Americans willing to get vaccinated increased from 51% in September 2020 to 60% in November 2020, which Pew Research Center attributes to increased confidence in the research and vaccine development process.
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Not Interested: Addressing Parental Vaccine Hesitancy Using Motivational Interviewing
Pharmacy Times2021
Vaccine hesitancy is a main driver for lower than desired vaccination rates and recent outbreaks of vaccine-preventable illnesses, such as measles, in the United States. While vaccination rates vary from community to community, the vaccine compliance with the 7-vaccine series in children aged 19-35 months was 70.4% nationally in 2017, well below the desired rates for effective herd immunity. Rates are even lower in certain settings, such as communities where federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) are often located.
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Joint Statement on Pediatric Education at Schools of Pharmacy
American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education2020
Providing health care for children is a unique specialty, and pediatric patients represent approximately 25% of the population. Education of pharmacy students on patients across the lifespan is required by current Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education standards and outcomes; thus, it is essential that pharmacy students gain a proficiency in caring for children.
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Implementation of a motivational interviewing-based decision tool to improve childhood vaccination rates: Pilot study protocol
Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy2020
Parental concerns regarding the safety and efficacy of vaccines have been on the rise over the past decade, resulting in a decline in comprehensive vaccine coverage in children. Healthcare practitioners face many challenges when recommending childhood vaccinations, with many parents refusing vaccination due to these and other concerns. Effective communication strategies and tools can equip providers to communicate with vaccine hesitant parents, but validated tools are currently lacking.
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Realizing the vision for pediatric pharmacy practice advancement through strategic planning and implementation
American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy2020
In a rapidly changing healthcare landscape, pharmacy leaders must be agile and innovative to ensure that patients receive the highest-quality care. Here we describe the benefits of using a structured approach to pediatric pharmacy practice advancement guided by strategic planning and quality improvement principles.
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Seizure Action Plans for Pediatric Patients With Epilepsy: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Journal of Child Neurology2020
Seizure action plans help patients and caregivers better self-manage their epilepsy. We hypothesized that providing pediatric patients and their caregivers with a seizure action plan would reduce unplanned health care utilization and decrease the impact of epilepsy.
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Impact of Obesity on Fosphenytoin Volume of Distribution in Pediatric Patients
Journal of Child NeurologyAB Prusakov, AD Patel, JW Cole
2018
The impact of body habitus on fosphenytoin pharmacokinetics is poorly understood in pediatric patients. This retrospective, single-center review examined differences in fosphenytoin volume of distribution (VD) between children with normal and obese body habitus. From 2013 to 2015, patients 2 to 18 years of age who received a loading dose of fosphenytoin were identified.
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