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As Respiratory Illnesses Rise, Vaccine Access is More Important Than Ever
With flu season around the corner and expected upticks in cases of COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), we can anticipate a perfect storm of respiratory viruses — often referred to as a “tripledemic”. To reduce disease burden and mitigate a potential strain on hospitals, it is more important than ever to ensure that children and adults around the world have access to vaccines. “Vaccines can make a major impact on the number of severe cases of those respiratory infections that we see, especially if the vaccines are utilized in populations that we know are more susceptible to severe disease, like those 65 and older,” says Dr. Andrew Pekosz, a professor and virologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health who studies the replication and disease potential of respiratory viruses.
According to the latest projections from the COVID-19 Scenario Modeling Hub, over the next two years, COVID-19 cases are expected to peak in the United States between November and mid-January. Fortunately, the use of updated COVID-19 vaccines — recommended earlier this month by the CDC for everyone 6 months and older — is projected to significantly reduce disease burden. Flu vaccines are projected to have similar benefits in the coming months, and the CDC has recommended RSV vaccines for pregnant people, newborns, and adults over 60 to prevent severe disease.
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IVAC Hosts Civil Society Engagement with Gavi Interim CEO
In partnership with the Gavi CSO Steering Committee, IVAC recently organized an engagement meeting between David Marlow, Interim CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and Nigerian civil society organizations (CSOs). Dr. Chizoba Wonodi, IVAC's Nigeria Country Director, moderated the discussions. She highlighted how CSOs can create awareness and demand for human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination but also noted the enormous challenges that these organizations face, including limited funding, low institutional capacity, and poor visibility of effort. "The CSOs left the meeting feeling hopeful that this engagement marked the beginning of many such dialogues, and they look forward to working with Gavi to unlock the vast potential of CSOs in working with governments to achieve global and local immunization goals," Dr. Wonodi said.
With funding from Gavi, IVAC is working in partnership with Direct Consulting and Logistics (DCL) and Women Advocates for Vaccine Access (WAVA) to support the upcoming HPV vaccine rollout in Nigeria next month. IVAC is taking a participatory, community-centered approach to engage CSOs in promoting awareness and acceptance of HPV vaccination to achieve high, equitable HPV vaccine coverage. Between July and August 2023, IVAC trained 58 CSO representatives and community health workers from 16 states in Nigeria, who have since gone on to implement step-down trainings, community dialogues, and sensitization and awareness efforts for HPV vaccine introduction and cervical cancer screening in their communities.
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IVAC Co-Hosts Workshop to Accelerate Introduction of Lifesaving Vaccines for Children
IVAC team members traveled to N’Djamena, Chad, earlier this month for a workshop focused on accelerating the introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) and rotavirus vaccine in four high-burden African countries: Chad, Guinea, Somalia, and South Sudan. Hosted in collaboration with the Mérieux Foundation, Every Breath Counts, Save the Children, Chad’s Ministry of Health, and the Malaria Consortium, the workshop brought together national, regional, and international stakeholders to address challenges and explore solutions to introduction and scale-up of PCV and rotavirus vaccine. Two of IVAC’s projects – Global Advocacy for PCV (GAP) and Choice Optimization for Immunization: Country Exercises in Sustainability (CHOICES) – led sessions during the workshop.
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Dr. Anita Shet, Director of Child Health at IVAC and principal investigator of the GAP project, presented research on the estimated impact of vaccine introductions in these four countries, which could save tens of thousands of lives and avert millions of cases of pneumonia, meningitis, and diarrhea.
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Molly Sauer, CHOICES project director, presented on key implementation considerations and tradeoffs. She also participated alongside colleagues from WHO, UNICEF, and Gavi in a panel facilitated by Dr. Andre Tonda (JSI) to discuss guidance, evidence, and support for vaccine introduction.
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Training of data collectors in Lusaka, Zambia.
IVAC Team Leads Training for Data Collectors in Zambia
A team from IVAC traveled to Zambia last month to train data collectors in preparation for a new qualitative study that hopes to understand the drivers of zero-dose status. Along with the Jhpiego Zambia team and Ministry of Health, IVAC Assistant Scientist Dr. Simon Mutembo and PhD candidate Brooke Farrenkopf led training on qualitative data collection and study activities, which will include key informant interviews with health providers and community members. Dr. Chizoba Wonodi, Nigeria Country Director at IVAC, led a photovoice training, teaching vaccinators and community health workers how to capture photos illustrating barriers to vaccination and other challenges they experience during their work. This work is supported by the USAID Family Health and Nutrition and the USAID MOMENTUM Country and Global Leadership programs.
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Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030) Scorecard Relaunches
We are excited to announce the relaunch of the Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030) Scorecard, which IVAC supports in coordination with WHO, UNICEF, CDC, and other partners, as part of the USAID MOMENTUM Country and Global Leadership project. The scorecard was relaunched earlier this week with all new data across 18 core indicators. Users will also be able to use several new features, including the ability to filter IA2030 performance by UNICEF region, WHO region, and income group. Some indicators have seen improvements thanks to major efforts by key partners, though there is still work to do to reach IA2030 Impact Goals of preventing disease, promoting equity, and building strong programs. |
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IVAC Joins Roundtable Discussion on Life-Course Immunization
Lois Privor-Dumm, IVAC Director of Adult Vaccines, participated in a roundtable discussion focused on life-course immunization, a side event held alongside the United Nations high-level meetings on pandemic preparedness and universal health coverage. The event was hosted by the International Longevity Centre and the Global Coalition on Aging and brought together experts to discuss how life-course immunization can be better integrated with pandemic preparedness and universal health coverage efforts to help health leaders prioritize cost-effective strategies to achieve sustainable development goals.
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Sources of COVID-19 Vaccine Promotion for Pregnant and Lactating Women in Bangladesh [Vaccines]
Authors include Berhaun Fesshaye, Clarice Lee, Prachi Singh, Ruth Karron, and Rupali J. Limaye
In this study, the authors sought to identify facilitators and barriers to COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and vaccine promotion in pregnant and lactating women in Bangladesh through in-depth interviews with pregnant women, lactating women, and health workers. Their results suggest that health workers and religious leaders played key roles in promoting COVID-19 vaccines in this population. |
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How to Eradicate Polio in Pakistan: Insights from Community Health Workers [PLOS Global Public Health]
Authors include Svea Closser
Pakistan is one of two countries where wild poliovirus is still endemic. From 2020–2022, researchers held a human-centered design ideas competition to engage frontline workers (FLWs) from 18 Super High-Risk Union Councils in Pakistan. In a series of brainstorming sessions, the FLWs identified the most significant barriers to their work and suggested potential solutions. These solutions focused on tackling community fatigue, improving primary health care to address numerous acute needs, increasing community engagement, and improving workplace dynamics.
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