Results of Vaccination Coverage in the Czech Republic

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Data on vaccination against preventable vaccine diseases are among the basic epidemiological indicators necessary to evaluate the success of vaccination campaigns and the effectiveness of the vaccination schedule in the prevention of infectious diseases. Without the existence of a national vaccination registry, this requirement cannot be successfully met. At present, we can monitor vaccination coverage in adults only in the national register of paid health services, based on reports from health insurance companies about vaccinations paid for by health insurance, which is still the minimum for adults. From 2022 onwards, we can expect vaccination data against tick-borne encephalitis in people over 50 and against the flu in healthcare professionals. Another way of determining adult vaccination coverage is based on vaccine sales, i.e. data from vaccine manufacturers that are inaccurate. The last option is to determine the vaccination coverage of adults on the basis of questionnaire surveys. But we still lack accurate robust data. At the same time, the World Health Organization has recommended to set up registers of vaccinated people long ago. Adult vaccination coverage Insufficient interest in some vaccines, and consequently small volume of influenza vaccine imports, makes it impossible to increase vaccination coverage in the 2021/2022 season beyond vaccine imports. Given the planned import of 1,080,000 doses of influenza vaccine in 2021 for 10.7 million people, we can reach a maximum of 10.1% vaccination coverage this season. In 2020, there was a decrease in the vaccination coverage of people aged 65+ against pneumococcal diseases. The cause may be remote health care for the elderly, limited preventive care and fear of doctor visits during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, 24.8% influenza vaccination coverage was achieved in institutionalized persons (persons in homes for the elderly, in long-term care facilities, in homes for the disabled, in homes with a special regime);24.5% influenza vaccination coverage in people aged 65 and over. Low influenza vaccination coverage was also achieved in 2020 in chronically ill patients (23.8% in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 23% with kidney disease, 20.8% with diabetes mellitus, 17.0% with cardiovascular disease and 11.2% with bronchial asthma). Compared to the data for the period 2010–2020, there was a decrease in vaccination coverage of institutionalized persons (a decrease of 8 percentage points). A lower number of vaccine doses compared to the previous year was also administered against tetanus in 2020 (a decrease of 21%). On the contrary, in 2020 there was a slight increase in vaccination against tick-borne encephalitis, from 29 to 33%. Unfortunately, almost half of those vaccinated did not complete the basic vaccination schedule. Conclusion: Despite significant improvements, we still do not have sufficient data on adult vaccination coverage. The creation of a national register of vaccinees and an electronic vaccination card is a necessity. COVID-19 has contributed to the decline in vaccination coverage of seniors and institutionalized individuals. Unlike children, we achieve significantly lower adult vaccinations in comparasion with international recommendations and with developed countries. © 2021, EEZY Publishing, s.r.o.. All rights reserved.