SPPG issued correspondence on 06 September providing details of the COVID-19 and Seasonal Influenza vaccination programme for Autumn 23.
Summary
The Community Pharmacy Vaccination Service (CPVS) COVID-19 & Seasonal Influenza – Autumn 2023 will officially begin on 18th September 2023.
All contractors have the opportunity to participate in this service on submission of signed contracts (Appendix 1 COVID & Appendix 2 Flu which are included in the service letter).
Community pharmacies will offer the COVID and Flu vaccines to those aged 18 years and above in the following eligible groups:
aged 65 years or older,
those under 65 who are clinically at risk – based on evidence supplied by the patient such as a GP letter, hospital letter or medication etc,
Immunosuppressed patients and their household contacts aged 18 to 64 years who provide evidence of eligibility by way of correspondence from their GP,
frontline health and social care staff (as set out in the Green Book definition),
pregnant women,
carers who seek vaccination (as set out in the Green Book definition).
Details on the vaccines to be used in the service are included in the service letter.
The service specifications and PGDs are available at the BSO and PCI.
Community pharmacies who have completed their contract can place orders for COVID-19 Comirnaty BA.4/5 [vaccine] and Flu- aQIV (65yrs and over) & QIVc (under 65yrs) with Movianto from 11th September,in preparation for the start date on 18th September.
Details of the service remuneration are contained in the service letter.
Further details on the regional COVID-19 and Influenza vaccination programme can be found in the relevant letters from the Chief Medical Officer.
Any queries regarding access to the Vaccine Management System (VMS) should be directed to tom.coyle@hscni.net.
Review the correspondence and bring to the attention of relevant members within your pharmacy team.
Those wishing to participate in this service should return a completed contract by secure email to their local SPPG office by 5pm Wednesday 13th September.
Should you have any queries please contact a member of the CPNI team.
Kind regards
SENT ON BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE Chief Executive
Dear Contractor
The Department of Health has issued an update (dated 4 September 2023) in respect of Serious Shortage Protocol SSP056 relating to Utrogestan 100mg capsuleshere.
SUMMARY
Contractors should note the following:
The expiry date for SSP056 (Utrogestan 100mg capsules) has now been extended until Friday 29 September 2023.
Contractors are reminded of the details relating to the decision pathways for SSPs; notification of GPs; the need for patient/carer agreement, and action to take when this is not given; professional judgement; and actions regarding unclear quantities.
ACTION
Contractors should:
Read the attached letter and ensure that their dispensing teams are fully apprised of the update to SSP056.
Note that the latest versions of SSPs are available on the Business Services Organisation dedicated page on its website HERE.
CPNI colleagues will continue to keep you up to date with details of any further SSPs issued.
Kind regards
Mike
SENT ON BEHALF OF PROF MIKE MAWHINNEY Head of Regulatory Affairs
This update contains important information for community pharmacy teams.
The eligible cohorts for both COVID-19 and flu vaccinations are those aged 18 and above in the following groups:
All residents and staff in a care home registered with the RQIA;
All adults aged 65 years and over;
Persons aged 18 years to 64 years in a clinical risk group, as laid out in the Immunisation Green Book, COVID-19 chapter/Influenza chapter (Green Book);
Frontline health and social care workers;
Persons aged 18 to 64 years who are household contacts of people with immunosuppression (as defined in the Green Book);
Persons aged 18 to 64 years who are carers (as defined in the Green Book);
Pregnant women.
The service specification and PGDs will be available soon on the BSO website.
Comirnaty BA.4.5 and XBB COVID-19 mRNA vaccines will be administered to individuals as the autumn booster doses. Deployment will initially be with Comirnaty BA.4.5 vaccine and will transfer to Comirnaty XBB vaccine when this is licenced and distributed.
Community pharmacies will be able to place orders for COVID-19 Comirnaty BA.4.5 vaccines and Influenza vaccines (aQIV and QIVc) with Movianto from Monday 11 September.
All patients vaccinated as part of the CPVS must be recorded on the regional VMS. Pharmacies are asked to test their access to VMS in advance of the programme. If there are any difficulties in accessing the VMS either phone BSO ITS Service Desk on Tel: 028 95 36 2400 or Email: supportteam@hscni.net and ask for a support call to be raised on your behalf. Please make it clear that the issue relates to the Vaccine Management System.
Any provider that does not currently have access can contact Tom Coyle (tom.coyle@hscni.net) who will provide further information on setting up and accessing VMS. New contractors should be aware it may take up to ten working days to set up a new pharmacy access to VMS.
Details on the fee structure, the item of service fee, set up fee and associated payments will be published shortly when confirmed by DH.
ACTION
Please ensure you read the correspondence that was issued today and share it with relevant members of the your pharmacy team.
Concessionary prices will be paid against the usual code, no additional endorsements are needed.
Please continue to notify CPNI of any pricing issues you are experiencing via our new Medicine Shortage Reporter.
Concessionary prices are also published on the CPNI website.
Kind regards
SENT ON BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE Chief Executive
Dear Contractor
Please find below details of a recent alert issued on behalf of Action Fraud regarding a remote access scam reported by organisations across the UK. While there are no reports of this being carried out locally, organisations in Northern Ireland are as exposed as any other to this type of incident.
Details
Action Fraud has received 31 crime reports since June 2023 relating to remote access scams targeting businesses. Victims have reported losses totalling over £3.8M. Based on analysis of crime reports by the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, it is advised that scammers will generally use the following tactic to target businesses:
Contact the victim claiming to be a representative from their bank or from a financial services vendor used by the victim’s business.
Convince the victim to install a piece of software that enables remote access to their computer, claiming that it’s required to install an important software update.
At some point during the call, the victim is instructed to login to their online banking account. Once the victim has done this, the remote access software is used to blur the victim’s screen whilst the scammer makes fraudulent transactions from the victim’s account without their knowledge.
The victim is also asked to read out a series of numbers the scammer claims they have sent to the victim’s mobile. In reality, the numbers are a one-time verification code from the victim’s bank which, if shared with the scammer, will allow them to transfer money out of the victim’s bank account.
Some victims reported a slightly different account of how the scam was perpetrated. However, the goal of the scammers usually remains the same – to convince victims to login to their online banking account whilst the scammer has remote access to their computer.
How to protect your business from remote access scams
Your bank will never ask you to grant them remote access to your computer or smartphone. Never install any remote access software on your device as a result of an unsolicited call, browser pop up, or text message.
The one-time verification codes sent to you by your bank to authorise transactions on your account should never be shared with anyone, not even bank employees.
If you believe your laptop, PC, tablet or phone has been infected with a virus or some other type of malware, follow the National Cyber Security Centre’s guidance on recovering an infected device – https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/guidance/hacked-device-action-to-take.
Received a suspicious call from someone claiming to be from your bank? Hang up, wait a few minutes, then call your bank using the contact number on the back of your debit card, or use the contact information on their official website or app. If your business has fallen victim to fraud or cyber crime, report it to Action Fraud at www.actionfraud.police.uk, or by calling 0300 123 2040. If you are a business, charity or other organisation which is currently suffering a live cyber attack (in progress), please call 0300 123 2040 immediately.
Action
Contractors are asked to:
Alert their pharmacy teams to the remote access scams which are currently being detected and ensure all team members know how to protect your business.
Further information can be accessed via the links on the Cyber Protect webpage HERE.
Kind regards
Mike
SENT ON BEHALF OF PROF MIKE MAWHINNEY Head of Regulatory Affairs
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