The individual, collective and public importance of vaccination

Document published by the Health Council of the Netherlands on its website (3 October 2013). Vaccine development has been improved and accelerated by new biotechnological methods, especially DNA techniques. New vaccines are regularly becoming available. Efficacious vaccines are now available for the prevention of diseases such as chickenpox, gastroenteritis caused by rotavirus infection, and shingles. However, these are rarely used in the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, vaccines are mainly used in the context of public vaccination programmes. The limited use of vaccines outside public programmes is probably based on a lack of knowledge about vaccination among physicians, coupled with their lack of experience in this area. Other factors may be a limited awareness among the general public, and the fact that these vaccines are not included in the basic health insurance package, or are financially inaccessible for other reasons. Potential health gains are being left untapped, mainly due to the way in which vaccination care is currently organised. The current assessment frameworks for basic health insurance packages and for public vaccination programmes were created by the Health Care Insurance Board (CVZ) and the Health Council respectively. The Committee proposes that a single assessment framework be used for all vaccinations. A general assessment framework can be relatively easily derived from existing frameworks. The Committee also recommends that modifications be made to training programmes and refresher courses for nurses and physicians in child healthcare, senior house officers, general practitioners, paediatricians and internists. The Committee proposes that the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment be entrusted with the management of public information campaigns across the entire spectrum of vaccination care. Source: http://www.gr.nl/nl/adviezen/preventie/het-individuele-collectieve-en-publieke-belang-van-vaccinatie http://www.gr.nl/en/publications/prevention/individual-collective-and-public-importance-vaccination