With influenza and pneumococcal immunization rates below national targets, researchers review the evidence for the effectiveness of different quality improvement interventions aimed at increasing vaccination rates.
The analysis of 106 studies involving more than 470,000 patients revealed the best chance for improving vaccination rates may be achieved by
1) shifting vaccine administration from physicians to members of the primary care team with clear responsibilities for chronic and preventive care and
2) activating patients through personal contact.
The authors note the impact of these interventions is modest, and they call on policy makers to temper their expectations of such interventions.
They call for further research to develop and evaluate more potent approaches and better understand how and why they work.
Interventions to Improve Influenza and Pneumococcal Vaccination Rates Among Community-Dwelling Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis By Darren Lau, BMSc, et al