2023-11-20 18:20:14
On November 14 and 15, at the headquarters of the African Center of Excellence for the Prevention and Control of Communicable Diseases (CEA-PCMT) of the University of Conakry, a feedback workshop was organized for around thirty actors involved in the implementation of the plan to introduce vaccination against Meningococcal A (MenA) meningitis into routine vaccination in Guinea.
This independent evaluation, carried out by the Guinean Study Office Africa Health Consulting, looked at all components of the EPI, including aspects of governance, financing and secure service delivery. This study made it possible to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the EPI in the implementation of the MenA vaccination strategy and to propose recommendations to improve vaccination coverage of all antigens, particularly for children and pregnant women. According to Doctor Gnouma Nestor Léno, head of the Monitoring and Evaluation section of the EPI, the data collected “shows (that many children are not vaccinated in Guinea. Based on global guidelines, it is important to develop a new strategy which will take into account all the current inadequacies of the EPI so that vaccination coverage is optimal”.
The evaluation results vary depending on the EPI components. But in the majority of cases, there is still a way to go. In the component Service provision, studies show that employability and motivation challenges for health human resources in rural and remote areas hamper the provision of vaccination services. Indeed, the operation of health services in rural and remote areas relies essentially on “volunteer” staff. “This situation coupled with their low motivation does not allow the effective implementation of free policies, including vaccination of children” explains Dr Delphin Kolié.
Mr Youssouf Fodé Camara, representative of the African Center of Excellence for the prevention and control of communicable diseases, welcomes the positive impact of such an initiative: “This workshop is of capital importance with regard to vaccination in Guinea . The Expanded Program on Immunization faces certain difficulties.
Dr Gassim Cissé, National Coordinator of the Expanded Immunization Program
Guinea is currently one of the countries with the lowest vaccination rates with less than one child in two vaccinated, that is to say less than 50% of children vaccinated. This could be explained by the reluctance of parents, the frequent shortages of vaccine products in health services, the difficulties of access to certain health structures and the insufficiency of qualified and motivated health personnel in rural areas. At the Ministry of Health, we are seeking to relaunch the Expanded Vaccination Program. For Dr Gassim Cissé, National Coordinator of the Expanded Immunization Program: “It is important to make reforms. If we want to increase vaccination coverage, we will need to know how the program works. It is with this appreciation that this study was conducted. It will provide information on the EPI. Today, the multi-year plan is obsolete, there is no valid strategic document. We are in the process of reviewing the organic framework to meet our ambitions.” He hopes that the meeting will allow us to better “appreciate our environment, the functioning of the EPI and provide solutions. The restitution of this study comes at the right time as the data will be taken into account to define the main pillars of the new national vaccination strategy.”
The day of November 14 was devoted mainly to the methodology (quantitative, qualitative), used to arrive at these results, the documentary review, the tools and different dimensions or components of the evaluation. Discussions also focused on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and lessons learned from the introduction of new vaccines (MenA and VAR2) in routine EPI. It is important to take into account the data from these studies to change policies and practices within the EPI, explains Professor Alexandre Delamou Director of CEA-PCMT at the University of Conakry.
An evaluation of the introduction of the MenA meningitis vaccine was the main activity on Wednesday 15 November. Here too, the statistics are not entirely rosy, but recommendations have been made to guide the development of the future strategic vaccination plan. These include the extension of public and private vaccination points, the availability of health workers and the adequacy between the workload and vaccination at all levels, the prioritization of recruitment to the public service of volunteers from health structures. health in rural areas, the implementation of the vaccine independence initiative, the improvement of the offer of vaccination services, the establishment of a collaboration and synergy mechanism for the capitalization of NGO interventions and media evolving in the context of vaccination…
These recommendations will be used to develop a new strategy for the period 2024-2028. Anything that could improve vaccination coverage in Guinea.
Yacine Diallo
#study #performance