The multiple first piloted the service in 40 branches in July-December 2018, and it is currently offered in 77 pharmacies – around 10 of which went live over the weekend. Thirty seven of these pharmacies are located within Sainsbury’s stores, Lloydspharmacy told C+D this morning (June 3).

It confirmed plans to open more than 100 clinics over the next 12 months, with pharmacies “going live daily”.

£20 telephone consultation

As part of the service, patients first have a telephone consultation with a specialist travel nurse at a cost of £20.

If appropriate, an appointment will then be made for the patient to visit their nearest Lloydspharmacy branch offering the service, where a trained pharmacist will administer the vaccinations at the additional cost of the vaccine.

For example, the rabies vaccine is available for £60, while a Yellow Fever vaccine is priced at £62.

The telephone consultation takes “under half an hour” and advises patients on which vaccinations are required based on their medical history, the places they are going and activities they have planned, Lloydspharmacy said.

Each patient will receive a “tailored travel plan”, as well as advice about travel health risks, such as Zika and dengue fever, it added.

No walk-in option

There is currently no walk-in facility, so patients have to book their consultation online or by phoning Lloydspharmacy’s travel vaccination partner company, MASTA, the multiple explained.

Commenting on the rollout of the service, Anna Ruthven, head of services at Lloydspharmacy’s parent company McKesson UK, said: “Not all GPs offer a full travel service and even if they do, some people find it difficult to get an appointment at a time that is convenient for them.”

She highlighted the extended opening hours in the Sainsbury’s-based pharmacies and the option to see a nurse face-to-face at a MASTA clinic as benefits of the service.

Read C+D’s in-depth analysis of how shifting expectations from patients and GPs are changing pharmacy travel clinics.