Release Date

December 28, 2026

Expires On

December 28, 2027

Statement of Need

Pneumococcal disease continues to take a heavy toll on U.S. adults, causing an estimated 225,000 hospitalizations and more than 40,000 deaths from pneumococcal pneumonia each year. Vaccination can prevent much of this burden, but too many eligible adults are not protected. As of 2022, roughly one in three adults 65 and older had never received a pneumococcal vaccine, and coverage among adults 19 to 64 with underlying conditions was only about 23%. Disparities are stark: coverage among adults 65 and older was about 69% for White adults, compared with roughly 54% for Black, 50% for Asian, and 42% for Hispanic adults. Opportunities are also being missed in routine care. In one health system study, nearly all adults hospitalized with invasive pneumococcal disease met criteria for vaccination, yet only 14% were up to date, even though most had recent hospital, outpatient, or emergency visits.

The challenge is growing as recommendations change. ACIP now recommends pneumococcal conjugate vaccination for all adults 50 and older, as well as for younger adults with certain conditions or risk factors, and the number of vaccine options and sequencing scenarios has increased. Surveys show that clinicians already struggle to apply these recommendations. About 4 in 10 family physicians, internists, and pharmacists said the guidance was not easy to follow, and about half were unfamiliar with how to apply recommendations for newer vaccines. Knowing the guidance is not enough on its own. Verifying vaccination history, flagging eligible patients, and coordinating with pharmacies and community partners all depend on how a practice’s systems and workflows are set up.

This quality improvement activity helps care teams close that gap in a way that fits their setting. Using a short practice assessment, participating clinics and clinicians see how their current processes compare with best practice, receive a personalized report, and build an action plan with goals, timelines, and team roles. A toolbox of ready-to-use resources supports each step, including EMR reminders, vaccination flowsheets, staff training materials, and patient education that is culturally responsive. Participants then reassess to measure progress. Designed for primary care, urgent and emergency care, hospital, and pharmacy teams, this approach turns updated guidance into lasting practice change and helps ensure more adults are protected, regardless of where they receive care.

Target Audience

This activity is intended for primary care providers, urgent care/emergency care providers, hospitalists, and community pharmacists who assess infection risk and/or provide immunization services to adults.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this activity, participants will be able to:

  1. Describe risks of invasive pneumococcal disease and the public health benefit of disease prevention
  2. Evaluate safety and efficacy data for pneumococcal conjugate vaccines in both vaccine-naive and vaccine-experienced adults
  3. Develop interprofessional protocols and pathways to increase pneumococcal vaccination rates among older adults
  4. Identify avenues to increase equitable access to culturally competent patient education materials

Method of Participation

To receive credit, learners are required to complete a baseline assessment; design, develop, and implement an action plan using our automated platform; view the online interventions; and return after 30 days to report progress in making system-level changes. A thorough response to the reflection questionnaire on your involvement in the quality improvement activity is also required for meaningful participation. A certificate will be available upon completion of the reflection questionnaire. There is no fee to participate in the activity or for the generation of the certificate.

ABIM credit will be submitted to ABIM within 30 days of completion.

Agenda

Pneumococcal Pneumonia and Invasive Pneumococcal Disease

  • Epidemiology
  • Disease burden
  • Causative serotypes
  • Identifying patients at increased risk
    • Age, underlying medical conditions, etc.

Pneumococcal Vaccines Available for Use in the United States

  • Polysaccharide vaccine
    • Serotype coverage
    • Clinical trial efficacy
    • Real-world effectiveness
    • Safety
  • Conjugate vaccines
    • Serotype coverage
    • Clinical trial efficacy
    • Real-world effectiveness
    • Safety
  • Considerations for vaccine selection

Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices Recommendations

  • Eligibility
    • All patients aged 50 years and older
    • Certain patients aged 19 to 49 years (underlying medical conditions and risk factors)
  • Pneumococcal vaccine history
    • Vaccine-naive patients
    • Patients who have received prior pneumococcal vaccines

Implementation Protocols and Pathways (45 minutes)

  • Strategies for improving vaccination rates
    • EMR-based reminders
    • Standardized vaccination flowsheets
    • Training of support staff
    • Identifying opportunities for vaccination (e.g., routine practice versus seasonal)
  • Coordination between HCP and secondary stakeholders in the community
    • Local pharmacies
    • Retirement communities
    • Churches, synagogues, mosques, civic and fraternal organizations (e.g., Elks Lodge), etc.
    • Public health departments
  • Opportunities to increase patient access
    • Reimbursement and coverage
    • Community outreach

Patient Communication Strategies and Education

  • Addressing frequently asked questions and concerns
  • Communication strategies for overcoming vaccine hesitancy (e.g., motivational interviewing)
  • Educational brochures
  • Shareable resources

Accreditation and Credit Designation Statement


Rush University Medical Center designates this Enduring Material for a maximum of 2.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Physician assistants (PAs) and nurse practitioners (NPs) may participate in this educational activity and earn a certificate of completion as AAPA and AANP accept AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ through their reciprocity agreements.

Rush University Medical Center designates this application-based activity for a maximum of 2.5 contact hour(s) for pharmacists.

ACPE Universal Activity Number:

Rush University Medical Center designates this Internet Enduring Material for a maximum of 2.5 ANCC contact hour(s).

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 2.5 MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine’s (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. Participants will earn MOC points equivalent to the amount of CME credits claimed for the activity. It is the CME activity provider’s responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC points.

By providing your ABIM Diplomate number and date of birth, you consent to have ACHL and/or our educational partners submit your participation in this activity to the ABIM through the ACCME PARS system. ABIM credit will be submitted to PARS each month.

Disclosures

It is the policy of the Interprofessional Continuing Education office at Rush to ensure that its CE activities are independent, free of commercial bias. Therefore, we manage all financial relationships associated with accredited continuing education activities. RUSH asks everyone who has the ability to control or influence the content of an educational activity to disclose information about all of their financial relationships with ineligible companies within the prior 24 months. An ineligible company is an entity whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients. There is no minimum threshold; individuals must disclose all financial relationships, regardless of the amount, with ineligible companies. Individuals must disclose regardless of their view of the relevance of relationships to education. Mechanisms are in place to identify and mitigate any potential conflicts of interest prior to the planning, implementation, or evaluation of the continuing education activity. If a financial relationship is identified for the person in control of content, conflict mitigation strategies will be used to mitigate the financial relationship before they assume their role.

Individuals in control of content for this activity have the following relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose and all financial relationships have been mitigated.

The following financial relationships have been provided:

Doug Campos-Outcalt, MD, MPA:
Consultant: Natera

Jeff Goad, PharmD, MPH, APP, FAPhA, FASHP, FISTM, FCPhA, FCSHP, CTH:
Consultant: Sanofi, Seqirus, Moderna, Valneva, Bavarian Nordic
Grant/Research Support: Merck

Staff and Reviewer Disclosures

Rush University Medical Center and the Office of Interprofessional Continuing Education staff members, ACHL staff members, and others involved with the planning, development, and review of the content for this activity have no relevant affiliations or financial relationships to disclose.

All of the relevant financial relationships listed for these individuals have been mitigated

Disclaimer

The content for this activity was developed independently of any ineligible company. All materials are included with permission. The opinions expressed are those of the faculty and are not to be construed as those of the publisher or grantor(s).

This educational activity was planned and produced in accordance with the ACCME Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education. Recommendations involving clinical medicine in a continuing medical education (CME/CE) activity must be based on evidence that is accepted within the profession of medicine as adequate justification for their indications and contraindications in the care of patients. All scientific research referred to, reported, or used in CME/CE in support or justification of a patient care recommendation must conform to the generally accepted standards of experimental design, data collection, and analysis.

Unapproved Uses of Drugs/Devices: In accordance with requirements of the FDA, the audience is advised that information presented in this continuing medical education activity may contain references to unlabeled or unapproved uses of drugs or devices. Please refer to the FDA approved package insert for each drug/device for full prescribing/utilization information.

Discussion of Off-Label, Investigational, or Experimental Drug/Device Use: PCV24, PCV25, and PCV31 vaccines under investigation

Acknowledgement

This educational activity is presented in collaboration with Rush University Medical Center and the Academy for Continued Healthcare Learning (ACHL).

Supported by an educational grant from Merck & Co., Inc.