I recently got to talk with two pharmacists with the Bartell Drug Company in the Pacific Northwest, each with names that made this lover of language smile: Wei-Wei Chyan and Mark Amoo . (The first is pronounced Way-Way Chen and Amoo rhymes with "bamboo.") An analysis of Washington State Immunization Registry data showed those two to be the most frequent user of the data exchange system called ImmsLinkâ˘, developed by STC. It allows users to not only report to the Immunization Registry, but to query it for the patient's vaccination history.
There were three issues that I wondered about with our pair of frequent users:
- Do customer/patients welcome this view into their health history, or do they resist it?
- When informed of missing vaccines, how are they open to receiving them on-the-spot?
- How does the Registry fit into workflow, especially during high-traffic times?
As for the first of these questions, customer response, our two pharmacists have encountered few negatives versus many positives:
As for Mark, he's encountered no resistance of any kind to the data or his using it to suggest additional vaccinations. He explains...
"When someone comes in for a vaccination, I always consult with ImmsLinkâ˘. The data at the registry is only as good as their physician's system but I'd say - rough estimate -- that two-thirds of the time I find the person and about one-third of the time I find very detailed records."
But, in any case, he uses whatever he finds or doesn't find at the registry as a conversation starter, and that conversation usually leads to an offer to do additional vaccinations. The response from his customer/patients? Mark responded,
"I was surprised by the reaction, that it wasn't bad at all.
I haven't had one person complain.
Sure, a handful have turned down the offer, but the typical reaction is...
"I might as well catch up while I'm here."
Wei-Wei reported only one person who objected to looking up data on the State registry, explaining, "She refused because she didn't want the government knowing her health records." Since then, she heads off any possible skepticism by saying, "Your doctors are reporting to the State registry, so you might as have access to your information, too." That works, she says, because "everyone wants access." That's why she routinely offers her customers the option of signing up for the MyIR app, which gives them access to their official state vaccination records.
Given the advantages of using the registry, I was curious as to times it is not used.
For Wei-Wei, there are times when the rush of customers causes her to wait till the end of the day to update the registry, although she makes sure to offer everyone with risk factors Tdap and Pneumonia. She also makes sure to always invite patients to use the MyIR app. She says, "I keep fliers with me. There's a window of time, usually after the vaccine, when the patients are putting their shirts back on, that I can talk about MyIR."
The customers' reactions? Wei-Wei explained,
"It makes sense to them and 99% are up for it. They see the benefit and like how they just need a cellphone or email and I can put them right into the system."
For Mark, there is no option of not using the system: "I'm fortunate to have gone to pharmacy school when vaccinations were a big topic. I'm pro-vaccination. Even in flu shot season, I fit in ImmsLink every time. It only adds a few seconds. I'm consistent. I'll do it every time."
Which takes us back to where we started, with Mark Amoo talking about being trusted. If you are offering your customers information about themselves, information they hadn't expected, it naturally creates a connection that reinforces the pharmacists' expertise. The subtext of checking the registry is, "I know what you need and I'm taking the time to share the information with you, and to help get you current." Implicit in the customer/patients response is an answer to this question: "Do you trust me with your health?" Based on what we learned from the two top users of the system, the answer is a clear yes. And that's how you become the go-to source for vaccinations.
