How to improve vaccination coverage in young children
Kevin Perrett and Adam Gowland
pp 1-1
The lion’s share of the discussion in journals about vaccination focuses on vaccinology – the scientific aspects of vaccines and vaccination policy. How best to deliver high vaccination coverage is, relatively speaking, a neglected topic. Although recent national guidance describing standards for the delivery of our national vaccination programme is laudably comprehensive, it does not readily answer the question as to what interventions make the big difference in improving coverage rates.
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Adopting ‘active patient management’ principles
Adam Gowland and Kevin Perrett
pp 2-3
At NHS Manchester, an immunisation promotion project was set up in 2011 in response to local vaccination uptake falling considerably short of national targets. By adopting the ‘active patient management’ approach pioneered by Heart of Birmingham Teaching Primary Care Trust, NHS Manchester has significantly improved its vaccination coverage of children under five years.
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Comment: Moving on apace
Peter M English
pp 3-3
In Vaccines in practice, we often discuss particular vaccines, the science of how they work, the practice of how to administer them and the art of persuading people that vaccination is the safest way to protect themselves or their child. This themed issue focuses on vaccination at a programme level, and the key lesson seems to be that, without good information systems, you are unlikely to succeed in improving vaccine uptake. I hope you enjoy the read.
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Streamlining data exchange between PCT and GP surgeries
Johan van Wijgerden
pp 4-5
NHS Ealing covers a densely populated urban area in West London with a highly mobile population of 340,000 inhabitants. In December 2006, Ealing was one of the first primary care trusts in London to adopt a new child health information system called RiO. Shortly after switching to the new CHIS, it became apparent that the uptake of childhood immunisation had drastically declined.
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Fostering active collaboration between all partners
Lesley Cliff
pp 6-7
Dudley Primary Care Trust (PCT) serves a population of around 305,000, of which approximately 47,000 are children. The provision of a quality immunisation service is the responsibility of the PCT via its public health immunisation team – also known as the communicable disease team. The PCT commissions 52 general practices as well as children’s and community services to deliver all national immunisation programmes.
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Applying a collaborative whole systems approach
Khushbu Lalwani
pp 8-9
Bexley Care Trust has seen a vast increase in the number of vaccinated children as a result of an immunisation improvement programme conducted across London. Challenges have been encountered at every step of the journey since 2009. Improvements continue, as the public health team at Bexley Clinical Commissioning Group works closely with partners across the borough to ensure that enough children are vaccinated to achieve the 95% target set by the WHO and prevent disease outbreaks.
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Implementing a community engagement model
Isobel Duckworth, Shane Mullen and Emily Griffiths
pp 10-11
The public health guidance 21 issued by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) outlines targeted approaches to increase immunisation in children and young people aged under 19 years. In North East Lincolnshire, to avoid vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks, we aim for immunisation uptake levels above the 95% threshold for all childhood vaccinations. We have taken proactive measures to ensure that services are in place to support childhood immunisation in line with the NICE guidance. This article describes some of the approaches we have implemented.
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