Some pharmacies to stop COVID shots due to 'high amount of stress and workload'
Hampton Guardian Pharmacy Manager Nicole Chiasson prepares a COVID-19 vaccination July 29. Chiasson said the pharmacy has made the decision to stop giving out COVID shots as of August 11 to allow their small staff to take a break, and to avoid potential wasted doses as demand decreases. Justin Samanski-Langille/Kings County Record
After months of long hours and increased workloads, some pharmacies in the province are getting ready to end their COVID-19 vaccination programs in order to give their staff a long-overdue rest.
Nicole Chiasson, pharmacy manager at Hampton's Guardian Pharmacy, said the decision to end their vaccine campaign as of August 11 is one which has been discussed many times in recent weeks as she and her staff seek to balance their duty and desire to help people be as healthy as possible, with the need to take care of themselves.
"It would be kind of silly to neglect the mental health [of staff], we have been under such a high amount of stress and workload," she said. "We were running beyond our capacity for months ... I really felt I owed it to my team to just give us a break."
Chiasson said despite her small staff, they have given out similar volumes of vaccine as those twice their size, and have effectively been doing two full-time jobs at the same time between giving vaccines, and their regular dispensing duties.
Fatigue not uncommon
With 232 pharmacies in the province, and the majority of those giving out COVID-19 vaccinations, New Brunswick Pharmacists' Association Executive Director Jake Reid said pharmacists across the province have been dealing with higher workloads and increased stress.
"People have to remember it is not just the work of administering the vaccine, which is what people see," said Reid. "There is a monumental amount of phone calls ... pharmacists are answering people's questions about the vaccines, and they are doing a very good job of actually drawing people in and convincing them to actually get the vaccines."
As vaccine demand declines as more of the province's population becomes fully vaccinated, Reid said he expects to see more pharmacies begin to opt-out of the program – and that is actually a good thing.
"Really, having a few pharmacies for now drop out is not actually a bad thing, it will encourage more people to funnel toward the clinics we do have, and it will reduce wastage," he said.
Pharmacies played important role in path to green
Department of Health spokesperson Bruce Macfarlane said the close relationship between pharmacies and Public Health is "one of the major reasons" for the vaccination campaign's success.
Macfarlane said 44 per cent of COVD-19 vaccine doses administered in the province have been administered by pharmacies, and even as some begin to end the practice, there are still plenty of other ways for New Brunswickers to get their jabs.
"To date, we still have 179 pharmacies participating in the vaccination campaign with many pharmacies indicating that they plan to continue offering COVID-19 vaccine in the coming weeks and months," he said in an email. "The province has seen unprecedented access to vaccines throughout this campaign with the participation of pharmacies, regional health authorities clinics and mobile pop-up clinics as well as employer and school-based clinics."
'We still have a lot of work to do'
While some pharmacies begin to wind down their vaccination efforts, others plan to continue.
"I'm going to keep vaccinating people until 101 per cent of our population is vaccinated," said Ryan Quinn, owner and pharmacist of the Shoppers Drug Mart Kings Place location in Fredericton. "I don't want to stop one bit because we still have a lot of work to do."
While he is still seeing strong demand for vaccines at his pharmacy, he said demand has been trending down recently, allowing his staff to take some time off while still operating clinics as needed.
While they may be taking a break from COVID-19 vaccinations, Chiasson said she and her staff won't be stepping away from giving jabs for very long.
She said come the fall, flu shot season will begin – and if last year is any indication – it is poised to be busier than average. There also remains the possibility that COVID-19 booster shots may become a necessity, and vaccination efforts will ramp up once again.