A seminar on vaccine confidence in Europe. The past years we see a rise in vaccine hesitancy, resulting in a drop in vaccine coverage. Vaccination issues are often discussed with stakeholders from the health sector. Also, governments are struggling with their communication about vaccination in order to have high vaccine uptake. Through a series of country case studies we examine challenges and solutions related to vaccine confidence.

The seminar will start with an introduction by EUPHA (the seminar organiser). Then we continue with presentations that give the perspective from public health stakeholders at European level on the coordination of vaccine confidence. Followed by case studies from several European countries. The panel will provide an ‘outside the box’-view, with perspectives from other sectors. In the closing we look at how to communicate actionable outcomes in light of vaccine confidence in Europe.

Preliminary Programme

Chairperson of the afternoon: Natasha Azzopardi Muscat, EUPHA President

14:45 – 15:00 Walk-in

15:00 Opening

Introduction: ‘Vaccination as a key public health measure’ – by Natasha Azzopardi Muscat, EUPHA President

15:00 – 15:30 Perspectives from public health stakeholders at European level; policy, coordination and surveillance

- Strengthening the EU cooperation on vaccine-preventable diseases

Isabel de la Mata, European Commission, DG Health and Food Safety

- Vaccination and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control

Irina Ljungqvist, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC)

- Working together to improve vaccine confidence in Europe

Tek-Ang Lim, Innovative Medicines Initiative, President of EUPHA section on Public Health Economics (2011-2018)

- Vaccine confidence in Albania

Ervin Toci, Institute of Public Health, Tirana, Albania

15:30 – 16:00 Country cases studies on vaccination

- The rise and fall of vaccine coverage rates in Italy – a case study

Carlo Signorelli, University of Parma & Vita-Salute San Raffaele- Milan

- Nothing can be changed until it is faced: Vaccination challenges in Poland

Maria Ganczak, Pomeranian Medical University, Szczecin, Poland

- Listening to the public’s attitude to immunisation - why it matters

Michael Edelstein, EUPHA section on Infectious Diseases Control

16:00 – 17:00 Panel discussion

- Ricardo Baptista Leite, UNITE network – Global Parliamentarians Network to End HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis and other infectious diseases

- Susanna Palkonen, European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients’ Associations (EFA)

- Ivo Vojtek, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)

- Marius Tudor, European Public Health Alliance (EPHA)

- Justinas Balčiūnas, European Medical Students’ Association (EMSA)

- Lisa Leenhouts-Martin, Denominator Group

17:00 – 17:30 Closing