Increasing the coverage of vaccination against influenza by general practitioners

Abstract

Background: To increase the coverage of influenza vaccination in groups of patients at risk, an experiment was conducted in 1993, aimed at logistic support of general practitioners (GPs). Methods: Support was given to 56 GPs with 133000 patients to select and invite patients at risk. The coverage of vaccination as a result of this experiment has been compared with the results obtained from the Health Interview Survey, in The Netherlands as a total. Results: About 15000 patients at risk were invited for vaccination, of whom 75⋅5 per cent were vaccinated. In The Netherlands as a total, the coverage of patients at risk was 43 per cent. Conclusion: Because the selection and invitation of patients at risk is still a problem for many GPs, owing to the lack of computerization, logistic support can ease these tasks and thus help increase the coverage of vaccination against influenza in groups of patients at risk. © 1996, Oxford University Press.