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"On the spot' vaccination: does it work?
M A Burgess1, M Levy, G Alperstein
1Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia.
Insights
A trial of "on the spot" childhood vaccinations found that 30% of children attending routine or acute care were overdue for immunizations. Expanding this system could significantly improve vaccination coverage and reduce vaccine-preventable diseases.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Public Health
- Immunization Programs
Background:
- Childhood vaccination is crucial for preventing infectious diseases.
- Maintaining high immunization coverage rates is a public health priority.
- Identifying barriers and opportunities to improve vaccination uptake is essential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate an "on the spot" vaccination system for children up to 15 years old.
- To assess vaccination status and uptake in Early Childhood Centres, a children's hospital, and general practices.
- To determine the feasibility and impact of immediate vaccination services.
Main Methods:
- Data collected via questionnaires from parents and healthcare professionals.
- Assessed vaccination status and vaccines administered "on the spot".
- Study conducted over an 8-week period in Sydney, Australia.
Main Results:
- 71% of children were up-to-date with vaccinations (84% excluding Haemophilus influenzae type b).
- 441 children received 663 "on the spot" vaccinations.
- Only 30% of children needing vaccination received it immediately, with low follow-up compliance.
Conclusions:
- A significant proportion of children (30%) had overdue vaccinations.
- The "on the spot" vaccination system shows potential to increase coverage.
- Expansion of this model could positively impact the incidence of vaccine-preventable diseases.
Objective:
To trial and evaluate a system of "on the spot' vaccination for children up to the age of 15 years in the Early Childhood Centres of the Central Sydney Area Health Service, at the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children and in a number of general practices in the area.
Methodology:
A brief questionnaire was used to collect data from parents and health care professionals about the child's vaccination status and vaccines given "on the spot'.
Results:
Over an 8 week period in August-September 1993, 5162 questionnaires were completed; 71% of children were up to date with their vaccination. If Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine, which had been introduced only 2 months before commencement of the study, was excluded, 84% of the children were up to date. A total of 441 children were given 663 vaccinations "on the spot'. Very few children were too ill to be vaccinated (6%). However, only 30% of those who needed vaccination "on the spot' actually received it (441 of 1480), and only 41% (24 of 58) of a subset of those who were not vaccinated were known to have complied 1 month later. Children attending Early Childhood Centres were younger than children attending general practices or the hospital.
Conclusions:
A high proportion of children who attended for routine or acute health care had vaccinations overdue (30%). If this scheme could be continued and expanded it would have an important impact on vaccination coverage, and hence on the incidence of vaccine-preventable diseases.
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