For the return of high vaccination coverage

Abstract

The global decline in vaccine coverage led the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019 to define vaccine hesitation as one of the world’s top ten threats to public health. In Brazil, the drop in vaccination coverage began in 2012, increasing from 2016, and was aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The warning of low vaccination coverage is accompanied by the reintroduction of immunopreventable diseases such as measles. The return of diseases so far eradicated, such as polio, can aggravate the ongoing health crisis. Despite the Brazilian National Immunization Program being recognized as one of the most effective worldwide and its continuous efforts, it is facing an extremely challenging scenario regarding immunization coverage. This article describes the Project for the Regaining of the High Vaccination Coverage (PRCV) and the strategy of working at the frontline, conducted in the local level, which has been implemented since 2021 and is already starting to show promising results. The PRCV was organized in three thematic axes with shared and specific actions, including: vaccination; information systems; communication and education. The outcomes achieved allow us to affirm that it is possible to reverse the low vaccination coverage, based on the articulation of structural and interinstitutional actions, with the strengthening of public policies and development of short-, medium-, and long-term measures. The most powerful factors of the PRCV are its approach to frontline professionals, the social pact for vaccination, and the establishment of local support networks for vaccinations.