Annual influenza vaccines are critical for public health, but many Pennsylvanians do not have adequate access. Forty-four percent of all Pennsylvanians do not receive an annual flu vaccine for a variety of reasons. Scientific misinformation, medical mistrust, overwhelming schedules, and general passivity all contribute to vaccine hesitation, underscoring the need to enlist additional vaccine providers with whom Pennsylvanians are comfortable and whom they already visit on a regular basis. Dental check-ups occur twice as often as primary care check-ups, so during flu season patients are more likely to see their dentist than their PCP. Furthermore, the American Dental Association (ADA) states that each year, nine percent of Americans go to the dentist but not a primary care provider. This statistic presents an opportunity for dentists to be enlisted as vaccine providers for this group of underserved patients in the comfortable, familiar, and accessible setting of their dental office. Dentists have advanced medical training and routinely administer anesthesia, so they are abundantly qualified to administer approved, safe and well-tolerated flu vaccinations. In addition, Oregon, Illinois, and Minnesota allow dentists to administer flu vaccines, illustrating that dentists are capable vaccine providers and establishing a legal precedent.
The Influenzers recommend that Pennsylvania should follow suit.
The Initiative
The Influenzers is a Pitt student-run, vaccine education and policy group aiming to increase vaccination availability and rates amongst vulnerable Pennsylvanians, especially those in Allegheny County. The group is newly funded by the Research!America organization, through which educational materials for local community groups are being made available. The Influenzers is working to put state-wide legislation in place that permits accredited, licensed dentists in Pennsylvania to administer influenza vaccinations to their patients.
How it works
Vaccinating more Pennsylvanians will result in a healthier, safer population. The more people who receive flu vaccinations leads to fewer emergency room visits and expensive medical bills. Dentists are an ideal group to assist in vaccination efforts because of their medical training, their accessibility to patients, and their scheduled patient continuity.
First, Pa. legislators will collaborate with dental providers and the Pa. Department of Health (DOH) to establish a protocol for dentists to input flu vaccine data into the Pennsylvania Statewide Immunization Information System (PA-SIIS) and to report the vaccination to the patient’s primary care provider.
Second, based upon the regulations that Oregon and Illinois established, dentists will be required to complete a brief training course about vaccine storage, safety, disposal, and contraindications before administering vaccines. Dentists will monitor patients for adverse events for 15 minutes after the vaccination. In the unlikely event that a patient has an adverse reaction, dentists have the medical training required to respond with appropriate first aid or referral to a local hospital.
Third, the same protocols used by physician offices and pharmacies will be followed to bill the patients’ medical insurance, ensuring appropriate reimbursement.
Fourth, during office visits, dentists will more easily discuss vaccine efficacy and safety with their patients, simultaneously administering the vaccine and educating their patients.
Next Steps
Please consider working with the Influenzers to help compose and introduce legislation at the Pennsylvania state level that would enable licensed dentists to administer influenza vaccines to their patients.
For more information, or if you have questions, please contact The Influenzers at 215-896-0127 or pittinfluenzers@gmail.com .