This Saturday, the Ministry of Health announced that more than 7.3 million vaccines were administered in Portugal in 2023 as part of the National Vaccination Program (PNV) and the seasonal vaccination campaign against influenza and Covid-19.
In its statement, the department highlighted the role of community pharmacies in the “success” of the campaign and said the number – 7.3 million – corresponds to more than 3.5 million users, more than a third of the country’s population.
As part of the ongoing seasonal vaccination 2023/2024, 2,492,171 people were vaccinated against influenza and 1,988,679 people against Covid-19.
“The participation of community pharmacies has contributed to optimizing vaccination opportunities, prioritizing convenience and proximity for users,” says the government communication, which underlines as part of the PNV that “Portugal maintains one of the highest vaccination coverage rates in Europe, thereby ensuring the protection of the population against re-emerging diseases such as measles.”
On Friday, the newspaper Diário da República published a decree that aims to “consolidate the management and operation model of the PNV, as well as other national vaccination strategies and campaigns, (…) adapt the planning and implementation of vaccination initiatives to the new organization of the National Health Service (SNS )”.
These include the recent establishment of local health units (ULS) across the country and the closure of regional health authorities (ARS).
The regulation concerns the vaccination scheme and defines responsibilities ranging from the authorization of new vaccines to their administration to users, including acquisition, logistics services, distribution, storage or monitoring and evaluation.
Thus, the Directorate General of Health (DGH) is responsible for national coordination, including planning, reporting, interaction with other organizations and evaluation.
Public health operational services at the regional level will provide regional coordination, while the ULS will be responsible for local coordination.
The SNS Executive Directorate operates the ULS network, and the Department of Health’s General Services provides centralized procurement, centralized vaccine registration, and coordination of communications campaigns.
The Hospital General Service (CHS) is responsible for the centralized provision of logistics services for the reception, storage, dispatch and distribution of vaccines and, if necessary, essential supplies for their administration, while the National Directorate of Medicines and Health Products (INFARMED) guarantees the implementation of medical policies .
Dutor Ricardo Jorge’s National Institute of Health (INSA) is responsible for ensuring the laboratory aspect of epidemiological surveillance and control of diseases targeted by national vaccination programs and campaigns, as well as conducting national serological surveys and coordinating genomic surveillance.
Finally, the Central Authority for the Health System (ACSS) monitors the financial resources recorded in the state budget to support the central procurement of vaccines and the financing of central logistics and distribution services.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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