scholarly journals Anatomy of the first six months of COVID-19 Vaccination Campaign in Italy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolò Gozzi ◽  
Matteo Chinazzi ◽  
Jessica T. Davis ◽  
Kunpeng Mu ◽  
Ana Pastore y Piontti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Modeling Framework ◽  
Frontline Workers ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Alpha Variant ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns ◽  
Allocation Strategies

We analyze the effectiveness of the first six months of vaccination campaign against SARS-CoV-2 in Italy by using a computational epidemic model which takes into account demographic, mobility, vaccines, as well as estimates of the introduction and spreading of the more transmissible Alpha variant. We consider six sub-national regions and study the effect of vaccines in terms of number of averted deaths, infections, and reduction in the Infection Fatality Rate (IFR) with respect to counterfactual scenarios with the actual non-pharmaceuticals interventions but no vaccine administration. Furthermore, we compare the effectiveness in counterfactual scenarios with different vaccines allocation strategies and vaccination rates. Our results show that, as of 2021/07/05, vaccines averted 29,350 (IQR: [16,454-42,826]) deaths and 4,256,332 (IQR: [1,675,564-6,980,070]) infections and a new pandemic wave in the country. During the same period, they achieved a -22.2% (IQR: [-31.4%; -13.9%]) reduction in the IFR. We show that a campaign that would have strictly prioritized age groups at higher risk of dying from COVID-19, besides frontline workers, would have implied additional benefits both in terms of avoided fatalities and reduction in the IFR. Strategies targeting the most active age groups would have prevented a higher number of infections but would have been associated with more deaths. Finally, we study the effects of different vaccination intake scenarios by rescaling the number of available doses in the time period under study to those administered in other countries of reference. The modeling framework can be applied to other countries to provide a mechanistic characterization of vaccination campaigns worldwide.

scholarly journals Seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies six months into the vaccination campaign in Geneva, Switzerland

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Stringhini ◽  
María-Eugenia Zaballa ◽  
Nick Pullen ◽  
Javier Perez-Saez ◽  
Carlos de Mestral ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Credible Interval ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Random Samples

Background: Up-to-date seroprevalence estimates are critical to describe the SARS-CoV-2 immune landscape in the population and guide public health measures. We aimed to estimate the seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies 15 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and six months into the vaccination campaign. Methods: We conducted a population-based cross-sectional serosurvey between June 1 and July 7, 2021, recruiting participants from age- and sex-stratified random samples of the general population. We tested participants for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies targeting the spike (S) or nucleocapsid (N) proteins (Roche Elecsys immunoassays). We estimated the anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies seroprevalence following vaccination and/or infection (anti-S antibodies), or infection only (anti-N antibodies). Results: We included 3355 individuals, of which 1814 (54.1%) were women, 697 (20.8%) were aged <18 years and 449 (13.4%) were aged ≥65 years, 2161 (64.4%) tested positive for anti-S antibodies, and 906 (27.0%) tested positive for anti-N antibodies. The total seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was 66.1% (95% credible interval, 64.1-68.0). Considering the presence of anti-N antibodies, we estimated that 29.9% (28.0-31.9) of the population developed antibodies after infection; the rest having developed antibodies only via vaccination. Seroprevalence estimates were similar across sexes, but differed markedly across age groups, being lowest among children aged 0-5 years (20.8% [15.5-26.7]) and highest among older adults aged ≥75 years (93.1% [89.6-96.0]). Seroprevalence of antibodies developed via infection and/or vaccination was higher among participants with a higher educational level. Conclusions: Most adults have developed anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, while most teenagers and children remain vulnerable to infection. As the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant spreads and vaccination rates stagnate, efforts are needed to address vaccine hesitancy, particularly among younger individuals and socioeconomically disadvantaged groups, and to minimize spread among children.

Ethical Considerations and Practical Implications in Romanian Covid-19 Vaccination Campaign

2021 ◽  
Vol 66 (Special Issue) ◽  
pp. 156-157
Author(s):  
Petru Sandu ◽  
◽  
Maria Aluaș ◽  
Răzvan M. Cherecheș ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Ethical Considerations ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
One Year ◽  
High Level ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Practical Implications

"Besides its undoubtable significant contribution to morbidity and mortality worldwide, the COVID-19 pandemic has had numerous political, social, economic, and public health implications. Vaccination, an already long debated public health ethics theme, has reoccurred in force, as the efforts of the scientific community to curb the pandemic resulted in a viable vaccine less than one year since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. High-level, international negotiations dictated states’ COVID-19 vaccine availability in the first few months, therefore each national Government had to develop and deploy vaccination campaigns prioritizing certain population categories. This paper aims to present Romanian COVID-19 vaccination campaign, from its inception to the present days, by focusing on the ethical considerations (e.g. prioritization, coercion, non-discrimination) and their practical implications ( e.g. vaccination hesitancy, rates, fake news). Like most countries in the European Community, Romania has initially adopted a Rawlsian approach to vaccination, prioritizing the older adults and the individuals with chronic conditions. However, unlike other European countries, coercion was not considered in any form (e.g. extended mobility facilities for the vaccinated), more recently incentives such as food vouchers being discussed. The impact of these decisions on the vaccination rates and hesitancy are discussed in the context of other European countries examples of vaccination campaigns. "

Voluntary to Mandatory: Evolution of Strategies and Attitudes toward Influenza Vaccination of Healthcare Personnel

2012 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Quan ◽  
David M. Tehrani ◽  
Linda Dickey ◽  
Eugene Spiritus ◽  
Denise Hizon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Influenza Vaccination ◽  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Vaccine Uptake ◽  
Healthcare Personnel ◽  
Vaccination Policy ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
Hospital Policies ◽  
Mandatory Vaccination ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns ◽  
The Impact

Background.Assessing the relative success of serial strategies for increasing healthcare personnel (HCP) influenza vaccination rates is important to guide hospital policies to increase vaccine uptake.Objective.To evaluate serial campaigns that include a mandatory HCP vaccination policy and to describe HCP attitudes toward vaccination and reasons for declination.Design.Retrospective cohort study.Methods.We assessed the impact of serial vaccination campaigns on the proportions of HCP who received influenza vaccination during die 2006–2011 influenza seasons. In addition, declination data over these 5 seasons and a 2007 survey of HCP attitudes toward vaccination were collected.Results.HCP influenza vaccination rates increased from 44.0% (2,863 of 6,510 HCP) to 62.9% (4,037 of 6,414 HCP) after institution of mobile carts, mandatory declination, and peer-to-peer vaccination efforts. Despite maximal attempts to improve accessibility and convenience, 27.2% (66 of 243) of die surveyed HCP were unwilling to wait more than 10 minutes for a free influenza vaccination, and 23.3% (55 of 236) would be indifferent if they were unable to be vaccinated. In this context, institution of a mandatory vaccination campaign requiring unvaccinated HCP to mask during the influenza season increased rates of compliance to over 90% and markedly reduced the proportion of HCP who declined vaccination as a result of preference.Conclusions.A mandatory influenza vaccination program for HCP was essential to achieving high vaccination rates, despite years of intensive vaccination campaigns focused on increasing accessibility and convenience. Mandatory vaccination policies appear to successfully capture a large portion of HCP who are not opposed to receipt of die vaccine but who have not made vaccination a priority.Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2012;33(1):63-70

scholarly journals In Vaccines We Trust? The Effects of the CIA’s Vaccine Ruse on Immunization in Pakistan

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Martinez-Bravo ◽  
Andreas Stegmann
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Difference In Differences ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
Osama Bin Laden ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns

Abstract In July 2011, the Pakistani public learnt that the CIA had used a vaccination campaign as cover to capture Osama Bin Laden. The Taliban leveraged on this information and launched an anti-vaccine propaganda campaign to discredit vaccines and vaccination workers. We evaluate the effects of these events on immunization by implementing a Difference-in-Differences strategy across cohorts and districts. We find that vaccination rates declined between 23% and 39% in districts in the 90th percentile of Islamist support relative to those in the 10th percentile. These results suggest that information discrediting vaccination campaigns can negatively affect trust in health services and demand for immunization.

scholarly journals Optimal allocation of vaccines - the role of childrens’ vaccination

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nir Gavish ◽  
Guy Katriel
Keyword(s):  
Mathematical Modeling ◽  
Optimal Allocation ◽  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Modeling And Optimization ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Optimal Allocations ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns

The ultimate goal of COVID-19 vaccination campaigns is to enable the return of societies and economies to a state of normality. Presently, vaccines have not been approved for children. In this work, we use mathematical modeling and optimization to study the effect of the ineligibility of children for vaccination on the effectiveness of a vaccination campaign. Particularly, we address the question of whether vaccination of children of age 10 and older, once approved, should be given higher priority than the vaccination of other age groups. We consider optimal allocations according to competing measures and systematically study the trade-offs among them. We find that, under all scenarios considered, optimal allocations of vaccines do not include age-group 0-9. In contrast, in many of these cases, optimal allocations of vaccines do include the age group 10-19, though the degree to which inclusion of this age group improves outcomes varies by case.

scholarly journals Expected Evolution of COVID-19 Epidemic in France for Several Combinations of Vaccination Strategies and Barrier Measures

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 1462
Author(s):  
Simon Pageaud ◽  
Catherine Pothier ◽  
Christophe Rigotti ◽  
Anne Eyraud-Loisel ◽  
Jean-Pierre Bertoglio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
International Health ◽  
Vaccination Strategy ◽  
Economic Consequences ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Bed Days ◽  
Alpha Variant ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns ◽  
Related Mortality

The outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, enhanced by rapid spreads of variants, has caused a major international health crisis, with serious public health and economic consequences. An agent-based model was designed to simulate the evolution of the epidemic in France over 2021 and the first six months of 2022. The study compares the efficiencies of four theoretical vaccination campaigns (over 6, 9, 12, and 18 months), combined with various non-pharmaceutical interventions. In France, with the emergence of the Alpha variant, without vaccination and despite strict barrier measures, more than 600,000 deaths would be observed. An efficient vaccination campaign (i.e., total coverage of the French population) over six months would divide the death toll by 10. A vaccination campaign of 12, instead of 6, months would slightly increase the disease-related mortality (+6%) but require a 77% increase in ICU bed–days. A campaign over 18 months would increase the disease-related mortality by 17% and require a 244% increase in ICU bed–days. Thus, it seems mandatory to vaccinate the highest possible percentage of the population within 12, or better yet, 9 months. The race against the epidemic and virus variants is really a matter of vaccination strategy.

scholarly journals Seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies 6 months into the vaccination campaign in Geneva, Switzerland, 1 June to 7 July 2021

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (43) ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Stringhini ◽  
María-Eugenia Zaballa ◽  
Nick Pullen ◽  
Javier Perez-Saez ◽  
Carlos de Mestral ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Educational Level ◽  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Credible Interval ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
Random Samples ◽  
Age And Sex

Background Up-to-date seroprevalence estimates are critical to describe the SARS-CoV-2 immune landscape and to guide public health decisions. Aim We estimate seroprevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies 15 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and 6 months into the vaccination campaign. Methods We conducted a population-based cross-sectional serosurvey between 1 June and 7 July 2021, recruiting participants from age- and sex-stratified random samples of the general population. We tested participants for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies targeting the spike (S) or nucleocapsid (N) proteins using the Roche Elecsys immunoassays. We estimated the anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies seroprevalence following vaccination and/or infection (anti-S antibodies), or infection only (anti-N antibodies). Results Among 3,355 individuals (54.1% women; 20.8% aged < 18 years and 13.4% aged ≥ 65 years), 2,161 (64.4%) had anti-S antibodies and 906 (27.0%) had anti-N antibodies. The total seroprevalence was 66.1% (95% credible interval (CrI): 64.1–68.0). We estimated that 29.9% (95% Crl: 28.0–31.9) of the population developed antibodies after infection; the rest having developed antibodies via vaccination. Seroprevalence estimates differed markedly across age groups, being lowest among children aged 0–5 years (20.8%; 95% Crl: 15.5–26.7) and highest among older adults aged ≥ 75 years (93.1%; 95% Crl: 89.6–96.0). Seroprevalence of antibodies developed via infection and/or vaccination was higher among participants with higher educational level. Conclusion Most of the population has developed anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, despite most teenagers and children remaining vulnerable to infection. As the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant spreads and vaccination rates stagnate, efforts are needed to address vaccine hesitancy, particularly among younger individuals and to minimise spread among children.

scholarly journals Measles antibody levels in children of rural and urban areas of Nigeria following vaccination campaign

1987 ◽  
Vol 99 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. O. Eghafona ◽  
L. E. Odama ◽  
S. O. Emejuaiwe ◽  
E. N. Obineche ◽  
D. S. Tafida
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Primary School Children ◽  
Rural And Urban Areas ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Measles Vaccination ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns ◽  
Antibody Levels

SUMMARYThis study compares the presence and level of measles haemagglutination inhibiting antibody in the sera of primary school children in selected rural and urban areas of Kaduna State, Nigeria following a vaccination campaign. The results, analysed by Mann-Whitney statistical test at α=0·05, showed significantly higher levels of haemagglutination inhibiting antibody in all the age groups in urban areas when compared with rural areas. The implications of these findings on measles vaccination campaigns are discussed.

scholarly journals Association of COVID-19 mortality with COVID-19 vaccination rates in Rhineland-Palatinate (Germany) from calendar week 1 to 20 in the year 2021: a registry-based analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Wollschläger ◽  
Emilio Gianicolo ◽  
Maria Blettner ◽  
Ruben Hamann ◽  
Nils Herm-Stapelberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vaccination Coverage ◽  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Federal State ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
Percentage Points ◽  
Real World Evidence ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns ◽  
Positive Results

AbstractVaccination is among the measures implemented by authorities to control the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, real-world evidence of population-level effects of vaccination campaigns against COVID-19 are required to confirm that positive results from clinical trials translate into positive public health outcomes. Since the age group 80 + years is most at risk for severe COVID-19 disease progression, this group was prioritized during vaccine rollout in Germany. Based on comprehensive vaccination data from the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate for calendar week 1–20 in the year 2021, we calculated sex- and age-specific vaccination coverage. Furthermore, we calculated the proportion of weekly COVID-19 fatalities and reported SARS-CoV-2 infections formed by each age group. Vaccination coverage in the age group 80 + years increased to a level of 80% (men) and 75% (women). Increasing vaccination coverage coincided with a reduction in the age group’s proportion of COVID-19 fatalities. In multivariable logistic regression, vaccination coverage was associated both with a reduction in an age-group’s proportion of COVID-19 fatalities [odds ratio (OR) per 5 percentage points = 0.89, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.82–0.96, p = 0.0013] and of reported SARS-CoV-2 infections (OR per 5 percentage points = 0.82, 95% CI 0.76–0.88, p < 0.0001). The results are consistent with a protective effect afforded by the vaccination campaign against severe COVID-19 disease in the oldest age group.

scholarly journals Measuring the Impact of Exposure to COVID-19 Vaccine Misinformation on Vaccine Intent in the UK and US

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Loomba ◽  
A. de Figueiredo ◽  
S. J. Piatek ◽  
K. de Graaf ◽  
H. J. Larson
Keyword(s):  
Age Groups ◽  
Vaccine Uptake ◽  
Major Step ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
The Us ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Vaccination Campaigns ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Intent To Vaccinate

The successful development and widespread acceptance of a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine will be a major step in fighting the pandemic, yet obtaining high uptake will be a challenging task, worsened by online misinformation. To help inform successful COVID-19 vaccination campaigns in the UK and US, we conducted a survey to quantify how online misinformation impacts COVID-19 vaccine uptake intent and identify socio-economic groups that are most at-risk of non-vaccination and most susceptible to online misinformation. Here, we report findings from nationally representative surveys in the UK and the US conducted in September 2020. We show that recent misinformation around a COVID-19 vaccine induces a fall in vaccination intent among those who would otherwise “definitely” vaccinate by 6.4 (3.8, 9.0) percentages points in the UK and 2.4 (0.1, 5.0) in the US, with larger decreases found in intent to vaccinate to protect others. We find evidence that socio-econo-demographic, political, and trust factors are associated with low intent to vaccinate and susceptibility to misinformation: notably, older age groups in the US are more susceptible to misinformation. We find evidence that scientific-sounding misinformation relating to COVID-19 and vaccines COVID-19 vaccine misinformation lowers vaccination intent, while corresponding factual information does not. These findings reveal how recent COVID-19 misinformation can impact vaccination rates and suggest pathways to robust messaging campaigns.

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