Second European Immunization Week meeting

To recapture the lessons learnt in 2007 and to start the planning of the next European Immunization Week, a meeting took place at the WHO Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, on 11–12 September 2007. Forty-two participants took part, representing 27 Member States and partners. The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss national and regional experiences and ways of consolidating, developing and strengthening European Immunization Week in the future.

While all participating countries planned and implemented Immunization Week activities according to their individual issues and challenges, some common lessons learnt were identified: 1) The wide-ranging media involvement and coverage, the impressive and extensive activity at subnational levels and the active involvement of partners were successful approaches that should be sustained and continued; 2) Time should be allowed for planning, including strategic planning, analysis, involvement of partners and resource mobilization; 3) The analysis of target groups must be detailed and the barriers and benefits well defined; and 4) The development and use of process and outcome indications is important to measure the national and regional
success of the initiative.

In addition, the meeting participants agreed on a range of milestones for planning next year’s European Immunization Week and some general recommendations for the future of the initiative:
− Member States will, together with WHO, develop some indicators for 2008 that could apply to the entire Region;
− Member States will establish working groups and initiate partner relations by December 2007;
− Member States will indicate their needs for WHO technical assistance in the area of communication, coordination, supporting documents or training by December 2007;
− EIW focal points will communicate with ministers and decision makers to get support for the initiative;
− Member States will consider ways of engaging local communication experts if needed. For this, WHO may be able to provide some funding; and
− Financial support requests for EIW activities will be sent to WHO before February 2008.