Nowadays, social media is an increasingly common and integral part of all people's lives. In ASSET theory and practice about social media have been explored extensively over the four years of work (2014-2017). It has been done by studying to what extent epidemic or pandemic preparedness and response are covered by contents shared on the main social network platforms. Specific studies have been developed such as analysing the social accounts and profiles of relevant pharmaceutical companies.
There are a number of groups that are especially vulnerable in terms of susceptibility to influenza and barriers to accessing vaccinations. This may lead to larger problems in case of a pandemic; for example, in the H1N1 2009 outbreak in Australia, indigenous Australians, a hard to reach group, were overrepresented in rates of hospitalisation (Seale et al 2010). Hard to reach groups may have adverse health outcomes, and the complex interplay of gender and social and economic marginalisation makes this a particular issue for women (Davidson et al 2011).
We are going to face important challenges in public health and we need to improve the collaboration between scientists and policy-makers. Walter Ricciardi, President of the Italian National Institute of Health, explains why science-in-society is not just a slogan but a key perspective for citizens, scientists, healthcare workers and politicians.
Professor Alain Fischer (info@concertation-vaccination.fr), doctor, professor of paediatric immunology, director of the Institute Imagine, holder of the chair of Experimental Medicine of the Collège de France and President of the Steering Committee for the Citizen Consultation initiative.
Bulgaria has a long immunization experience. Immunizations against tuberculosis, polio, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, measles, mumps, rubella, and hepatitis B have been mandatory for decades as well as recently introduced immunizations against pneumococcal diseases and Haemophilus infl.b infections too. Additionally, HPV vaccine was intensively introduced as recommended for 12-year old girls within a national vaccination campaign for prevention of HPV - caused cancers.
Women who are pregnant are more likely to have severe disease and hospitalisation with either seasonal or pandemic influenza, compared to the general population or compared to non-pregnant women of the same age group. During pandemics, the mortality rate for pregnant women is higher than non-pregnant women. However, this is not the case with seasonal influenza unless the strain is particularly severe (WHO 2010).
The report of the WHO SAGE Vaccine Hesitancy Working Group defined vaccine hesitancy as “a behaviour, influenced by a number of factors including issues of confidence (e.g. low level of trust in vaccine or provider), complacency (e.g. negative perceptions of the need for, or value of, vaccines], and convenience (e.g. lack of easy access)”.
