Strategies of municipalities in Minas Gerais to increase COVID-19 vaccination coverage in children

Abstract

Objective: To understand which strategies were adopted by municipalities to achieve COVID-19 vaccination coverage in children. Methods: Qualitative intervention study conducted by the Vaccination Studies and Research Center of the UFMG School of Nursing, in collaboration with the State Department of Health of Minas Gerais. Participation of 212 municipalities in the study with a decreasing trend in vaccination coverage rates in children under two years of age. Eight workshops were held to prepare the action plan to combat low vaccination coverage rates. The workshops were audio recorded and transcribed, and the material was analyzed in three steps. Results: The content analysis of the workshops highlighted three categories: “Intersectoral actions used by municipalities as a strategy to achieve COVID-19 vaccination coverage among children”; “Continuing education actions for healthcare staff” and “Reorganization of work processes in vaccination rooms”. In the first category, coordinated actions with social services, education, spaces for political debate and other agents were described. In the second, continuing education actions both with the nursing team working in vaccination rooms and with professionals providing care to children and adolescents were mentioned. In the third category, the difficulties of working in vaccination rooms were highlighted, explaining the need to reorganize and optimize work in this location. Conclusion: COVID-19 vaccination in children has been a major challenge for managers, epidemiological surveillance coordinators, nurses and nursing technicians in the vaccination room. Despite the efforts of health teams, it was not possible to achieve the vaccination coverage target, which shows the complexity of the vaccination scenario and the need to join forces from different sectors to increase the coverage in children’s population.