According to a study led by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), a COVID-19 vaccination program based on prompt procurement, effective on-the-ground distribution, and a rapid pace of vaccination (the total number of doses given daily) is likely to have a greater public health impact than one based on relatively small differences in vaccine efficacy.
The coronavirus is known as the deadliest among all of its siblings and hence to protect the human body against the same the only option left is to have quick vaccination.
Prompt Purchase & Distribution Of Vaccinations Are Critical Effectiveness
To carry out the vaccination program it is necessary to have vaccines in each area and maintain the supply in comparison to the demand in the area. In many areas, it is seen that desired supply level is not maintained by the staff which disrupts the campaign.
Scientists evaluating the clinical outcomes and cost-effectiveness of a COVID-19 vaccination program in South Africa discovered that focusing on these implementation factors in low-resource countries is likely to dramatically reduce infections, save lives, and reduce overall healthcare costs through fewer hospitalizations. Journal nature Communications has published this research.
“What’s key is putting injections into people’s arms as soon as possible,” explains lead author Krishna Reddy, MD, MS, a pulmonary and critical care specialist at MGH.
“Our findings suggest that, in terms of stopping the spread of the virus and protecting more people, increasing vaccination rates and vaccine acceptance across communities is likely to be more important than focusing on very minor differences in vaccine effectiveness.”
Most low- and middle-income nations do not have enough supplies of COVID-19 vaccines because to cost, dosage limits, and logistical issues associated with vaccine manufacture, delivery, and storage.
Using a valid framework model of COVID-19, the MGH team discovered that meeting the South African government’s goal of protecting 67 percent of its population in a year would have an enormous impact on infections and deaths whereas really lowering healthcare prices when put next to low levels of population coverage.
Increasing vaccine coverage to 80% of the population would save even more lives while just marginally raising expenditures.
“Achieving the Department of Health’s aim of vaccinating the majority of its population in South Africa, and in similar low- and middle-income nations,” says senior author Mark Siedner, MD, MPH, an infectious diseases physician and researcher at MGH. “These leaders must also work hard to eliminate restrictive patent obstacles, liberalize distribution, and obtain an inexpensive price for resource-constrained nations by negotiating with vaccine providers, as was done for HIV medications over the previous two decades.”
Locally, he says, there is an urgent need for investment in well-managed vaccine distribution and administration infrastructure, as well as community outreach, to deliver doses into arms as fast and effectively as possible.
The experts also stated that although vaccination programs are being implemented, habits including mask-wearing and physical separation will be critical in slowing the spread of the worldwide pandemic. The fact that barely 20% of South Africans are completely vaccinated underscores the necessity for a multi-pronged campaign.
“Our goal is for the findings of our study to steer international political leaders of the requirement of quickly supplying vaccines to countries who lack the resources of the US and different high-income countries,” said the author. Reddy says. “It’s a good investment for every country because the fastest and most fair way to stop this pandemic and ensure that everyone has access to affordable vaccinations.”
Reddy is a Harvard Medical School assistant professor of medicine. Siedner is a Harvard Medical School associate professor of medicine. Co-authors include Kenneth Freedberg of MGH and HMS, as well as Richard Lessells of the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.
