Vaccination data infrastructure: time to tap into the potential for health in Europe

Today I am participating to an important panel discussion at the European Health Management's 2023 Annual Conference in Rome. MSD is proud to be sponsoring this event looking at how to maximise vaccination data to tackle HPV-related cancers and other diseases.

There is no doubt that large amounts of quality data are the lifeblood of sound healthcare policymaking. If the data across jurisdictions is comparable, then your pool of evidence is that much broader, deeper and more powerful. That's why interoperable vaccination registries are so important to crafting smarter policies that can meet public health goals like the ambitious targets in Europe's Beating Cancer Plan.

The critical infrastructure for vaccination data is Immunisation Information Systems (IIS). These are confidential, population-based, computerised information systems that record, store and provide access to consolidated individual immunisation information.

IIS are a key public health tool to monitor disease burden, vaccination campaign performance and emergency preparedness. Having identified vaccination gaps and trends, policymakers can then optimise their vaccination programmes by improving resource allocation, efficiency and the servicing of under-vaccinated communities.

Vaccination data systems can also help show the true value of vaccination to society. For example, one study in the UK linking HPV vaccination data with oncological registrations from 2006 to 2019 found that HPV vaccination can reduce cervical cancer cases by nearly 90%.

Digital solutions can be deployed at scale

So what can we do to tap into the potential of vaccination data? The response to the COVID-19 pandemic proved that the massive deployment of digital health solutions is possible. Digital certificates for COVID-19 vaccination, recovery and testing proved critical to facilitating the return to social normality and thus also had a major economic impact.

These certificates prove that interoperable health data solutions can be safely deployed at large scale within and between countries. The EU-wide overview of vaccination coverage rates for COVID-19, through the dedicated tool of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), enabled data-based decision-making at regional level. This should be an example for any routine immunisation.

Italy's digital response to HPV

Much of the practical roll-out of digital health solutions will be at the national or even local levels. Italy provides a good example of the kind actions and variation that is possible.

As of 2016, 18 out of 21 Italian regions have fully implemented immunisation registries for HPV, with three regions still only being partly computerised. These systems have a variety of capabilities, such as recording high risk factors, manage vaccine storage or collect reasons for non-vaccination.

Italy's vaccination data systems have already yield positive results. The Italian IIS links cervical cancer screenings to vaccination opportunities, which resulted in a reduction of HPV prevalence among the vaccinated. Tracking vaccination coverage is easy via a national HPV database accessible via the Ministry of Health website.

Overall, Italy has made great strides in exploiting digital solutions against HPV, even if further progress can be made.

We have the technology, now all we need is the will! At global, regional and local level, it's time to put the policy focus on implementing interoperable vaccination data systems. These can improve health policy decision-making, drastically reduce HPV-related cancers and other diseases, and ultimately pave the way to healthier lives in Europe.

Author: Nicoletta Luppi, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, MSD Italy