Center Awards $1.9M for Innovative Approaches to Global Vaccine Equity

The University of Michigan Center for Global Health Equity has awarded $1.9 million to two research teams that are developing novel health solutions that advance vaccine equity around the globe. The teams have co-designed their projects with global partners, with each project expected to create a significant impact on improving vaccination rates in these communities.

To address vaccine equity in low-income countries with transformative ideas, the Center hosted a Global Vaccine Equity Ideas Lab in 2022. Researchers from 13 units across the University of Michigan—including all 3 campuses—engaged in this intensive, interactive event.

The first project is led by Gershim Asiki, Research Scientist at the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) and Emily Treleaven, Research Assistant Professor at the U-M Institute for Social Research.

Achieving high vaccination coverage is the most successful public health intervention in reducing deaths from infectious diseases.
–Gershim Asiki

The project—titled The Next Generation Vaccine Card: Innovative Technology to Improve Vaccine Equity in Rural and Urban Settings in East Africa—was awarded $1.1 million and will develop a parent-facing digital vaccine card and local registry that facilitates the electronic collection of individual data at health facilities. Such a “card” will allow improved monitoring of vaccine coverage and timeliness by both healthcare providers and parents/caregivers.

“A digital vaccine card will revolutionize vaccination coverage by bridging the equity gaps in rural and urban settings in East Africa through better access to accurate vaccination status information and maintenance of current records of child vaccinations by healthcare providers for tracking missing or delayed vaccinations,” said Asiki. “Achieving high vaccination coverage is the most successful public health intervention in reducing deaths from infectious diseases.”

A central feature of the digital card is that it overcomes the problem of lost, damaged, or destroyed paper copies of vaccination records.

“The proposal to develop a digital vaccine card in collaboration with Kenyan and Ugandan partners directly tackles one of the most enduring challenges of childhood vaccination—the lost vaccine card,” said Matthew Boulton, senior associate dean for Global Public Health and professor of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine at the U-M School of Public Health. “Providing an easily accessible digital shot record for ready use by moms, clinicians, and health departments has the potential to overcome the unrealistic expectation that a vaccine card can always be available on demand while also ensuring children receive the right vaccine, at the right time, and in the right place.”

The other project is led by Dr. Harapan of the University of Syiah Kuala School of Medicine in Indonesia and Abram Wagner, research assistant professor of Epidemiology at the U-M School of Public Health.

The project is titled Trusted Faces, Familiar Places, and it was awarded $826,700. The team is working to create a paradigm shift in how the public views and utilizes vaccination services.

Innovative approaches are desperately needed to reach the millions of children who are under- or unvaccinated each year.
–Matthew Boulton

“Currently, community health centers remain the default setting for vaccination, and clinicians the default administrators. But many have difficulty accessing these clinics or trusting traditional vaccination providers, particularly if they are members of communities with low socioeconomic status,” said Harapan. “Our project applies a two-pronged approach to address both trust and ease of access.”

By mobilizing religious communities to discuss vaccines, the goal is to counter reported lack of information about vaccines among unvaccinated families. By training more community health workers in vaccination and in physically delivering vaccines through a “vaccine-in-a-van” concept, the team will help facilitate ease in accessing vaccines.

“The inclusion of faith leaders and community health workers in Indonesia to assist with both advocating for and administering infant and childhood vaccines holds out tremendous promise for increasing vaccine coverage,” said Boulton. “Innovative approaches are desperately needed to reach the millions of children who are under- or unvaccinated each year.”

Both projects ensure that all children in a given community can receive on-time immunization to protect them from vaccine-preventable diseases, many of which present significant barriers to achieving full health and well-being.

“Vaccine equity is a complex issue, and these co-designed projects bring a wealth of experience, talent, and innovation to the table,” said Joseph Kolars, Center director, and senior associate dean and Josiah Macy Jr. Professor of Health Professions Education at the U-M Medical School. “The Center is beyond pleased to be funding these unique solutions to vaccine equity that incorporate not only the science of vaccines but also social structures, economics, policies, and more.”