This article originally appeared on Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs. Below is an excerpt.
Using real-time monitoring of childhood immunization campaigns can enable real-time decision-making and ensure that children in hard-to-reach areas can be located and vaccinated in a timely manner, according to research from the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs.
The report, supported by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and coordinated by UNICEF, found that by using digital tools to identify gaps in immunization and tracking reasons for any resistance to vaccination, teams could quickly tailor new vaccination strategies by sending vaccinators to specific locations or changing vaccine messaging to dispel rumors and misinformation.
“In this report, we highlight good real-time monitoring practices and lessons learned from successful immunization campaigns in several countries,” says CCP’s Saori Ohkubo, one of the authors of the research. “Our findings can help others make their campaigns run more smoothly and reach more children with critical vaccines.”
Read the full article here.