Burden of Disease – a key Area of Work under the PIP Framework Partnership Contribution (PC) Implementation Plan 2013-2016

As of 2014, only few Member States of the European Region reach the WHO targets for seasonal influenza vaccine uptake in risk groups (including persons over the age of 65, pregnant women and health care workers). A better understanding of the burden of influenza disease and the decision-making process could ultimately lead to increased seasonal influenza vaccination uptake and should expedite decisions around pandemic vaccines.

The main outcome of the PIP Framework related to the Burden of Disease component will be to provide national policy-makers with influenza disease burden data needed for informed decision-making and prioritization of health resources. 

In the European Region, several Member States will be targeted for Burden of Disease activities. Among other activities, standardized tools for economic burden estimates will be applied to produce national estimates on the burden of influenza disease. 

In August 2014, national experts from 8 Member States in the European Region attended a workshop on how to estimate national disease burden associated with seasonal influenza and improve knowledge of recent developments in influenza vaccination.