Bestway Medhub anticipates biggest ever flu season for pharmacy
National pharmacy wholesaler, Bestway Medhub, is preparing for its largest ever flu season, with stock due to be arriving imminently into its supply chain and distribution network.
Paul Insley, Head of Bestway Medhub and Wardles said: “The annual Flu jab service is a fantastic opportunity for independent pharmacies show their true value. Pharmacies are in the heart of the communities and ideally placed to offer these important NHS and private healthcare services in a convenient and accessible way.
“We’ve been busy pre-selling vaccines for the last three months. We’ve seen our customers being very proactive this year securing stock to meet the demand for their patients. So far, we’ve already pre-sold triple the number of vaccines from the same time last year.
“As a result of the pandemic, flu infection levels last year were low because of people not mixing, wearing masks, social distancing, and restricted travel. It’s anticipated that the winter flu season in the UK could be up to 50% larger than usual. Flu can be a serious illness and the pharmacy sector has already shown they are highly experienced, trained and skilled to deliver large scale vaccination programmes.”
In a bid to help support pharmacists to prepare for a very busy autumn ahead – Paul Insley, Head of Bestway Medhub and Wardles, who is also a qualified pharmacist has shared his top three tips to help pharmacists prepare for a successful flu service.
Paul’s top tips to boost your flu service this season:
- Engage the whole team: make sure that everyone in the team is briefed and geared up to make the service as easy and effortless as possible for patients. Everyone can play their part from completing patient consent forms to inputting data following appointments – this will make sure your patients enjoy the convenience of getting their jab from pharmacy.
- Organise your stock: make sure your stock is segregated in your fridge in the pharmacy – set aside any vaccines for patients which have pre-booked appointments to avoid disappointment.
- Opportunity to cross-sell: when offering the flu jab service, make sure you talk to patients about the additional services your pharmacy offers – everything from the private pneumococcal vaccination service to the NHS lateral flow distribution service, it’s a fantastic opportunity to grow your business and support patients with their health and wellbeing.
Bestway Mehub will also be offering a free flu vaccination to all its employees, as they do every year.
For more details or to set up an account, contact Bestway Medhub team on 0800 050 1055 and email sales@bestwaymedhub.co.uk.