Keeping the wolf from the door

With the flu season beginning this month, Dr Brian Morton, Chair of the AMA Council of General Practice, writes in Australian Medicine about the challenge of ensuring that patients value the service and care they receive and make their family doctor their vaccine provider of choice. He adds that a move toward pharmacist vaccinators would pose a serious threat to patients’ continuity of care, jeopardise the currency of their medical record and put patient safety at risk. He urges GPs to discuss with patients their vaccination needs, be fully informed about this year’s vaccines and restrictions on use, and know which patients are eligible to receive the vaccine under the National Immunisation Program. 

AMA Vice President, Professor Geoffrey Dobb also discusses the trials and tribulations of vaccinations in his article in this week’s issue of Australian Medicine.