VISAKHAPATNAM: Pfizer India and Apollo Hospitals have jointly established a new dedicated Centre of Excellence (CoE) for adult vaccination at Apollo Hospital, Visakhapatnam. The CoE aims to strengthen community-wide protection against various vaccine-preventable diseases such as pneumococcal disease, influenza, human papillomavirus, and hepatitis A and B, among others.
In India, nearly 95% of deaths related to VPDs occur in adults. Despite adult vaccination being a proven, science-backed strategy for improving quality of life, its uptake in the country remains low. Vaccination is crucial in preventing VPD-related health complications, especially among individuals with comorbidities such as chronic lung disease, diabetes, chronic heart disease, chronic kidney disease, cancer, and other immunocompromised conditions. The CoE aims to address this issue by equipping healthcare professionals with essential information about the long-lasting benefits of adult vaccination.
Ram Chandra J, Chief Operating Officer of Apollo Hospitals, Visakhapatnam, stated that lifelong vaccination is a simple and effective way to protect individuals and the community against vaccine-preventable diseases. “By promoting increased vaccine uptake among adults, we can ensure extensive, multi-layered protection against infections, which is particularly important for vulnerable populations,” said Ram Chandra.
The CoE will undertake educational initiatives to ensure that healthcare practitioners are provided with evidence-based information on the benefits and importance of adult vaccination. It will offer capacity-building efforts and comprehensive training modules, as well as access to adult vaccination guidelines and protocol recommendations. This will enable healthcare practitioners to engage early with at-risk groups and discuss the benefits of vaccination as a preventive healthcare measure.
Dr Santosh Taur, Director of Medical Affairs at Pfizer Vaccines, stated that through the Centre, they aim to empower healthcare practitioners and patients with comprehensive and crucial information to guide care decision-making and the adoption of preventive strategies such as immunisation.
Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, and Mini Crossword.
Start a Conversation
Post comment