Pharmacists in Nigeria have urged the government to integrate community pharmacies into routine immunisation services, citing their potential to reduce the country’s high number of zero-dose children, those who have never received any routine vaccines.
Experts say community pharmacists are often the most accessible healthcare professionals, particularly in underserved areas where primary healthcare centres are overstretched. By involving pharmacies as strategic partners, the government could expand immunisation coverage and improve access for millions of children.
Nigeria has the highest global burden of unvaccinated children, with UNICEF estimating over two million children have yet to receive even a single vaccine.
The immediate past vice chairman of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), Ogun State chapter, Olumide Obube, said, “About 31% of children aged 12–23 months are zero-dose. Community pharmacists can bridge these gaps if properly integrated into national immunisation programmes”.
He emphasized that pharmacist-led vaccination should be regulated and evidence-based, improving vaccine accessibility, safety, efficiency, and equity. “Pharmacies are trusted, accessible, and staffed by professionals capable of delivering vaccines safely,” he said.
Obube added that integrating pharmacies into primary healthcare could ease pressure on hospitals, manage minor ailments, and provide point-of-care testing for diseases like malaria and HIV. “Test-and-treat or test-and-refer models reduce hospital congestion and improve early diagnosis, provided regulatory oversight is maintained”, he said.
PSN President, Aliyu Tanko, highlighted that pharmacists are largely absent from many primary healthcare centres. “Pharmacists should be recognised as key members of the primary healthcare workforce and integrated into national health programmes”, he said.
Pharmacy leaders concluded that leveraging community pharmacies in immunisation and primary healthcare could strengthen disease prevention, improve health equity, and reduce the financial burden on families, ensuring no child is left behind.
