Follow the link to view an excellent update on EIW activities in Tajikistan:…

I came away from this week's launch of European Immunization Week in sombre mood. To be honest, I'd expected some fairly perfunctory speeches about the importance of vaccination, the usual niceties about improving communication, followed by coffee and a chat.I was looking forward to it.

But the real sense of unease among top public health officials from the WHO, UN and European Commission - as well as political and royal representatives of Belgium - was palpable.

They painted a…

Portal de Salud de Castilla y León has posted a link to the campaign for EIW 2011:

http://www.saludcastillayleon.es/profesionales/es/vacunaciones/semana-europea-vacunacion-prevenir-proteger-vacunar

 Target groups, strengths, opportunities, challenges, weakness and solutions were discussed today in the meeting 

The Minister of Health of Albania, Petrit Vasili welcomed the specialists of 10 countries of SEE Europe and Greece and Italy and praised the  work done in vaccination until now in the region and asked for more coordination at the regional level

SHARING SOLUTIONS TO COMMON THREATS - VACCINATION AND VULNERABLE POPULATIONS IS DISCUSSED BY THE SPECIALISTS OF 10 COUNTIRES IN TIRANA ALABANIA.

SPECIALISTS OF ALBANIA, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, BULGARIA, CROATIA, GREECE, , ITALY,KOSOVOMACEDONIA, MONTENEGRO AND SERBIA  GATHERED TODAY IN ALBANIA

More then 40 participants joined today in discussions about the current situation and best practices to improve immunization of the migrant population in the Region. It was a pleasure to hear about dedicated and enthusiastic work from Greece, Italy, Germany... And there are different stories to hear, knowledge to share. 

We all share the same problem - how to assure high immunization coverage, how to protect every child with vaccines. We all have pockets of not vaccinated…

The iPhone is one of the most sought-after tech gadgets in the world, and there's an iPhone app for almost everything...now including immunization! The application is made available by a handful of businesses, with the support of the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health, the Federal Commission for Vaccinations, the Association of Cantonal Doctors, the Swiss Pediatric Society and others.

Check out the Viavac app…

Many of the countries participating in EIW 2011 are using the Internet to raise awareness about the initiative and, more genereally, immunization. Here is a sampling of some EIW links that you may want to check out to see how Member States are promoting the initiative online:

Belgium…

We have been seeing outbreaks of measles occurring in many European countries, particularly in Western Europe. Quite strange you may think, but vaccination efforts have been much more intense and effective in Eastern Europe. Luckily, people (that is children) that do get the Measles jab, are protected against this disease. And do not think it is harmless disease. People die from it! Perhaps not many, but on average, in the West, 1 in every 1000 measles cases die of complications. In Africa,…

See below for an update on polio supplementary immunization activities (SIAs) and other EIW activities in Tajikistan...

The elimination of polio in the Republic of Tajikistan is in focus: Immunization campaigns are on the way!

An outbreak of poliomyelitis (polio) due to wild poliovirus type 1 started in Tajikistan early in 2010, eight years after the WHO European Region was certified as polio free. As a part of the joint effort between the…

As a part of marking the EIW 2011, the WHO Country Office in Georgia has translated all relevant materials into the local Georgian language and disseminated them widely among relevant stakeholders.

They were also posted, along with the English originals at the UN in Georgia website.

Here is a link to the English materials on the UN in Georgia website: http://ungeorgia.ge/eng/news.php?id=195



And…

Ministry of Health of Serbia, Institute of Public Health of Serbia and WHO Country Office organized a scientific conference to discuss immunization related issues under the theme of "working together against common threats". More than 50 specialists from all public health institutes of Serbia convened in Belgrade on 26 April to overview current status of their national immunization programme and to identify challenges that the Programme is facing. 

Immunization advocates confirmed…

At this morning's EIW launch several speakers mentioned the problems that parents face when they move their families from one country to another while their children are in the middle of the national immunisation programme.

All EU nations have very good immunisation systems but they differ from country to country - and sometimes even from one region to the next.

My own daughter is nine months old and has had several shots thanks to the excellent public health system in Belgium.…

Just back from the EIW launch in Brussels. There were some big-hitters from all sides of the public health and policymaking hierarchy but all were agreed that Europe has some serious work to do on re-building public trust in immunisation.

This has been clear for some time but the outbreaks of polio in Central Asia and of measles in several western European nations have focused minds like never before.

(We've covered this a few times on Vaccines Today recently - see…

This year, for the first time, five of the six regions of the World Health Organization (WHO) will unite for the cause of immunization during the last week of April.  The WHO European Region has recognized European Immunization Week (EIW) since 2005. In the six years since that pilot initiative, EIW has grown into one of the most visible annual public health events in the Region – bringing together our 53 Member States to boost…

As European Immunization Week officially begins, many high-profile figures and organizations are choosing to express their support for this vital initiative. Check out statements from:

HRH Crown…