Impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on routine immunization of the population in the Republic of North Macedonia

Mustafa, Zana and Memeti, Shaban and Pollozhani, Azis and Arsova-Sarafinovska, Zorica and Stravrik, Katarina and Grozdanova, Aleksandra (2022) Impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on routine immunization of the population in the Republic of North Macedonia. Macedonian pharmaceutical bulletin, 68 (1). pp. 515-516. ISSN 1857 - 8969

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Abstract

Immunization is one of the most powerful and cost-effective public health interventions, preventing about 2 to 3 million deaths each year. The SARS-COV-2 pandemic has spread all over the world and as a direct result of the virus, millions of lives were lost. The indirect effects of the pandemic are equally important. Routine childhood immunization systems were heavily influenced globally and in May 2020 the WHO announced that at least 80 million children under the age of one were put at risk of missing the important and scheduled life-saving vaccines. Data in this paper are from the submitted annual reports on conducted and completed mandatory immunization against infectious diseases in the Republic of North Macedonia, delivered by the Centres for Public Health and their regional units and/or health institutions that implement immunization in the country, as well as the processing and analysis of data obtained from the Institute of Public Health in Skopje, North Macedonia. Decrease in coverage with all types of vaccinations and revaccinations was present in 2020 and 2021, mainly due to current COVID-19 pandemic. There is no doubt that the pandemic had also a huge impact on other health services which are not related to the control and prevention of COVID-19, including mandatory routine immunization. Although the vaccination process was continuous and uninterrupted, the pandemic restriction measures and limitations had a strong impact on reducing the coverage percentage. The impact of restrictive measures in 2020 that included frequent restrictions on population movement and delays in vaccination due to fears of COVID-19 infection played a major role in reducing the coverage, while in 2021 there was an additional factor such as engagement of vaccination teams in COVID-19 vaccination, which resulted in a further reduction of mandatory routine vaccination coverage. Campaigns for public health awareness and educational interventions for healthcare workers and parents are more than necessary to ensure adequate catch-up of delayed or missed immunizations to prevent potential outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.

Item Type:	Article
Subjects:	Medical and Health Sciences > Health sciences
Divisions:	Faculty of Medical Science
Depositing User:	Zorica Arsova Sarafinovska
Date Deposited:	05 Feb 2023 22:20
Last Modified:	05 Feb 2023 22:20
URI:	https://eprints.ugd.edu.mk/id/eprint/31359

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