ACTIVITY OF PRIMARY MEDICAL CARE PATIENTS IN VACCINATION AGAINST INFLUENZA, TICK-BORNE ENCEPHALITIS, HEPATITIS AND PNEUMOCOCCAL DISEASE

ABSTRACT

 

Introduction: Infectious diseases do harm not only to human health, but also cause certain consequences for national economics as well. The programme on immunisation is one of the most acknowledged and successful public health programmes in the whole world

Aim: Assessing the activity of primary medical care patients in vaccination against influenza, tick-borne encephalitis, hepatitis and pneumococcal disease.

Methodology: The research was carried out from April 2015 up to March 2016. The data was collected at medical centre Saulės šeimos medicinos centras (SŠMC) of Kaunas city. During patients’ visits, family doctors filled in anonymous questionnaires about the patients visiting SŠMC for consultation by indicating their gender, age and vaccination. There were 10 family doctors in total from SŠMC taking part in the research.

Results: The research involved 1686 patients: 1022 (60.6%) females and 664 (39.4%) males. The average age of the investigated population was 39.16 (±SN) ± 27.62 of 0 to 94 years of age. The group of randomly-selected patients of 0-18 years of age included 497 persons (29.5%), 19-35 years of age – 280 (16.6%), 36-50 years of age – 260 (15.4%), 51-70 years of age – 358 (21.2%), ≥ 71 years of age – 291 (17.3%). The total number of the patients vaccinated with any vaccine amounted to 864 (51.25%), the number vaccinated against influenza was 494 (29.30%), against pneumococcal disease – to 330 (19.60%), against TBE – to 154 (9.10%), against hepatitis – to 130 (7.70%). An influenza vaccine was administered in 331 (32.89%) females and 163 (24.55%) males, p=0.001. A pneumococcal vaccine was administered in 199 (19.47%) females and 131 (19.73%) males, p=0.90. A TBE vaccine was administrated in 97 (9.49%) females and 57 (8.58%) males, p=0.53.

Conclusions: 1. The most part of the patients has vaccinated against influenza and pneumococcal disease, the least part – against TBE and hepatitis. 2. The influenza vaccine has been administrated in females more often than in males. 3. Vaccines against influenza and pneumococcal disease are mostly used by patients older than 71 years of age. Vaccines against hepatitis and TBE are mostly administrated in the patients of 0 to 18 years of age. 4. Most patients have been vaccinated against influenza only. And very little part of the patients has been vaccinated with two or more different vaccines.