Immunization/Vaccines
- Translating Implementation Experiences and Lessons Learned From Polio Eradication Into a Global Health Course: Insights From an International Consortium
Using international collaborations to develop educational materials presents several challenges but offers enormous benefits in gleaning a wealth of information, perspectives, and context. The global course that resulted from this collaboration mirrors the goals of implementation science more broadly—to bring the findings of research into routine practice to improve health services.
- Blended Learning Using Peer Mentoring and WhatsApp for Building Capacity of Health Workers for Strengthening Immunization Services in Kenya
Innovative learning strategies are needed to improve frontline health workers' skills for achieving immunization coverage goals—now even more important with COVID-19. Peer mentoring and WhatsApp networking are low-cost and useful blended learning methods for need-based and individualized capacity building of health workers for improving immunization services that don't disrupt the health care workers' regular work.
- The Untold Story of Community Mobilizers Re-engaging a Disengaged Community During the Endemic Era of India's Polio Eradication Program
Although India's polio eradication program began with a flourish in 1995, gradually, the community disengaged from the program as misinformation about the vaccine spread. Vaccination teams faced abuse and even physical aggression. What caused this break in communication? CORE Group Polio Project's mobilizers had to delve deep to uncover untold stories of why communities were disengaged from the government's polio eradication efforts.
- Health Care Worker Preferences and Perspectives on Doses per Container for 2 Lyophilized Vaccines in Senegal, Vietnam, and Zambia
When providing immunization services, health care workers balance the mandate of achieving high coverage with limiting vaccine wastage. Workers in 3 countries said that containers with fewer vaccine doses for measles and BCG would enable them to immunize all children who present, while reducing concerns about wasting vaccine.
- A Rapid Cost Modeling Tool for Evaluating and Improving Public Health Supply Chain Designs
The Rapid Supply Chain Modeling Tool enables health system leaders to quickly estimate and compare the cost impact of potential supply chain design improvements in situations where time and budget do not allow for more in-depth modeling approaches.
- Lessons Learned From Implementing Prospective, Multicountry Mixed-Methods Evaluations for Gavi and the Global Fund
Lessons learned from implementing evaluations for Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and the Global Fund for AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria can help inform the design and implementation of ongoing or future evaluations of complex interventions. We share 5 lessons distilled from over 7 years of experience implementing evaluations in 7 countries.
- The Critical Role and Evaluation of Community Mobilizers in Polio Eradication in Remote Settings in Africa and Asia
Critical community health worker criteria are important for all community programs, including those focused on a single disease. Areas of importance include community engagement, local adaptation, and linkage with the health system—critical areas for current and future epidemics.
- Determinants of Facility-Level Use of Electronic Immunization Registries in Tanzania and Zambia: An Observational Analysis
We provide a framework to quantify the use of electronic immunization registry systems at the facility level and results show the importance of behavioral and organizational factors in explaining their sustained use in Tanzania and Zambia.
- Using Data to Keep Vaccines Cold in Kenya: Remote Temperature Monitoring With Data Review Teams for Vaccine Management
Using technology to make data visible to stakeholders and giving those stakeholders a framework for analyzing that data for decision making improves cold chain management of vaccines in Kenya.
- Operationalizing Integrated Immunization and Family Planning Services in Rural Liberia: Lessons Learned From Evaluating Service Quality and Utilization
Providers, managers, and clients valued the integrated service delivery model. Trends indicated slightly higher family planning uptake in intervention facilities, but that difference was not statistically significant. Intrafacility referrals by postpartum women did not negatively affect immunization utilization rates.