SAFETY SURVILLANCE & IMPLIMENTATION OF STRATEGIES FOR SAFE & QUALITY USE OF VACCINES

Despite the appreciable efforts by government, immunization programs of India are not able to achieve its target, but also lagging behind to achieve immunization coverage as par with the global immunization coverage of 85%. It is important to understand the knowledge attitude and practice of parents towards immunization of their children and develop and implement suitable strategies to improve the immunization coverage. The strategies can vary based on the culture and education of the population. In this study, we observed that personalized education to the parents is very useful in complete immunization schedule. To promote safe and quality use of vaccines, starting from cold chain management of vaccine to AEFI reporting, appropriate educational interventions are necessary. HCPs communication can help any parents to gain confidence on vaccination, which leads to a successful immunization program of a country. Inadequate knowledge about reporting process, lack of time and interest were the identified challenges contribute to low reporting rate by spontaneous reporting method. Awareness and sensitization on identification and reporting of AEFIs is essential depending on the role played by each HCP on the immunization process.

Keywords: Immunization programs, Safety Survillance, Quality use of Vaccines.