Symposium 4: Evaluation of vaccination policy
Tracks
Track 4
| Sunday, October 13, 2024 |
| 10:30 - 12:00 |
| Faculty of Medicine Building 1 |
Details
According to the World Health Organization, immunization is a key component of primary health care and an indisputable human right. It is also one of the best health investments money can buy, as vaccines are critical to the prevention and control of infectious disease outbreaks, and therefore, also underpin global health security. Vaccines are medical products and vaccination policy is a public health intervention strategy. As the International Society for Pharmacoepidemiology defines, “pharmacoepidemiology is a scientific discipline that uses epidemiological methods to evaluate the use, benefits and risks of medical products and interventions in human populations”. Despite, not much attention is given to vaccines and vaccination policies in pharmacoepidemiology academic gatherings and, as a result, there is a perceived paucity of knowledge of vaccines and vaccination policy among pharmacoepidemiologists. Moreover, pharmacists make up a substantial proportion of the pharmacoepidemiology community and are also important stakeholders in primary health care delivery but, unlike physicians, not much is being done to empower them with the appropriate knowledge on vaccines and vaccination policies.
Although vaccination has substantially reduced global deaths from infectious diseases, some infectious diseases such as measles are still common in many developing countries, including those in Asia. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, “all countries and territories in Asia-Pacific have established vaccination programmes including a minimum number of routine vaccines and additional vaccines are included at national or subnational level based on local morbidity, mortality and cost-effectiveness analysis”. Despite, there is a paucity of published evidence on the effectiveness of the various vaccination programs and any variabilities in effect across strata of various population characteristics – knowledge that is highly relevant to public health and is needed for optimization of vaccination policies across the Asia-Pacific region.
Speaker
Dr George Okoli
Post Doctoral Research Fellow
The University of Hong Kong
Presenter
Biography
Dr. Okoli is a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Control at The University of Hong Kong School of Public Health
Prof Simon Bell
Monash University
Presenter
Biography
Dr Grace Wangge
Associate Professor
Monash University, Indonesia
Presenter
Biography
Dr. Grace Wangge is a medical doctor and epidemiologist dedicated to Public Health Policy and Drug Development. She joined Monash University Indonesia as an Associate Professor in the Master’s of Public Health program in 2022, following extensive roles at Universitas Indonesia and other institutions since 2003. Her research delves into public health, digital health governance, pharmacovigilance, and health science communication, with a focus on addressing challenges in low- and middle-income countries and during health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Wangge has contributed to numerous peer-reviewed publications and policy briefs that discuss public health issues in Indonesia and Southeast Asia. She also serves as Vice President of the International Society of Pharmacovigilance's Indonesia Chapter since 2021 and has been actively engaged with the International Society of Pharmacoepidemiology since 2010.
A/Prof Ching-Lan Cheng
National Chen Kung Uiversity
Presenter
Biography
Ching-Lan Cheng, Ph.D., is a faculty member at the School of Pharmacy, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) in Taiwan, with a background in pharmacy. She completed her training in pharmacoepidemiology and clinical pharmacy at NCKU and has over 10 years of experience working in hospitals in Taiwan. Since 2018, she has also served as the Director of the Department of Pharmacy at NCKU Hospital. Her major research focuses on comparative studies of drug effectiveness and safety using claims databases. Additionally, she conducts studies aimed at evaluating quality improvement at NCKU Hospital.
Moderator
Jenni Ilomaki
Monash University
George Okoli
Post Doctoral Research Fellow
The University of Hong Kong
