Kent pharmacies overwhelmed by ‘panicked’ students after meningitis outbreak

Pharmacies located near the meningitis outbreak in Kent are flooded with ‘panicked’ students asking for vaccines, antibiotics, PPE and hand sanitiser.

Giles Lane Pharmacy in Canterbury said it has had students ‘queuing up outside’ since Monday and concerned parents phoning from all over the world to ‘pressurise’ pharmacy staff into vaccinating their children, yet their supply of MenB vaccine has run out.

They also told The Pharmacist that other pharmacies in the area were facing the same issue.

A spokesperson for Giles Pharmacy said: ‘Every phone call is about the vaccine, so every minute we are denying people and redirecting them to the Senate building where the university [is offering antibiotics and a targeted vaccination programme].

‘We even had parents calling from abroad – from Germany, France, and even Canada – asking if we could administer the vaccine and pressurising us to do it. But there’s nothing that we can do.’

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This situation has placed immense pressure on the pharmacy, and the staff have stopped delivering all their regular services to try and manage it, the spokesperson added.

The number of meningitis cases has now risen to 20, with six confirmed to be group B meningococcal disease (MenB), the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed today (18 March).

So far, more than 2,500 doses of antibiotics have been given to students, close contacts and others including some of those who attended Club Chemistry between 5 and 7 March, the agency said.

And a targeted vaccination programme will begin, starting with students who live in the Canterbury Campus Halls of Residence at the University of Kent with up to 5,000 students expected to be to  contacted and offered the vaccine.

Giles Lane Pharmacy also reports hearing a lot of misunderstanding among students about what meningitis is and how it is spread, with many treating it like ‘a Covid situation’ and asking for masks and hand sanitizer.

Speaking in the House of Commons today, health secretary Wes Streeting said: ‘[Meningitis] doesn’t spread very easily. The bacteria is passed to others after a long period of close contact. For example, when living with someone in shared accommodation, through prolonged kissing, or sharing vapes and drinks.’

All those who are currently affected are young adults. One individual, who had resided in Kent, presented to a London hospital with no community contacts in London, the UKHSA has said.

Today, GPs across the country have been advised by NHS England to prescribe antibiotics to anyone who visited Club Chemistry between 5 and 7 March and to University of Kent students, if they have been asked to seek preventative treatment.

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This is so that anyone who has travelled home, or away from Kent, can easily access this preventative treatment close to them.

Where an eligible contact presents and has not already received preventative medicines, this should be prescribed as per national guidance, NHSE added. First line treatment is ciprofloxacin, to be given as a single dose:

• Adults and children aged 12 years and over: 500 mg stat;
• Children aged 5 to 11 years: 250 mg stat;
• Children aged 1 to 4 years: 125 mg stat;
• Infants under 1 year: 30 mg/kg to a maximum 125mg stat.

Meningococcal disease can progress rapidly, and lead to meningococcal meningitis or septicaemia. Symptoms can include a fever, headache, rapid breathing, drowsiness, shivering, vomiting, cold hands and feet and a characteristic rash that does not fade when pressed with a glass.

A snap survey by the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) yesterday found that 87% of pharmacies had seen a considerable rise in requests for the meningitis vaccine, far exceeding the supply available from wholesalers.

NPA chair Olivier Picard said: ‘We understand many patients, including parents with older teenagers, will be concerned by this situation and will be keen to vaccinate themselves or their loved ones.

‘However, pharmacies are having to manage constrained levels of supply, and many have told us they cannot order in new stock.’

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Dr Leyla Hannbeck, chief executive of the Independent Pharmacies Association (IPA), has called for the NHS to launch a nationally coordinated vaccination programme, delivered through community pharmacies.

She said: ‘Many pharmacies, particularly those in the south, are getting requests every minute from worried parents asking for the meningitis vaccination. The majority of pharmacies have run out of stock and cannot order any in from the suppliers.

‘We are asking JCVI to approve a nationwide pharmacy-led rollout to reach teenagers and young adults at pace, protect vulnerable groups, and prevent further spread. The Government must act now to deliver this without delay.’