By: Jorge Emilio Osorio
President
VaxThera

The recent report from UNICEF, “The State of the World’s Children 2023: For Every Child, Vaccination,” highlights the clear challenges that persist in ensuring vaccine access for all populations. The fact that 67 million children missed out on some or all of their routine vaccinations between 2019 and 2021 has—rightfully—sounded an alarm, underscoring the need for truly effective action to address this issue.

Throughout my years of experience in this field, I have seen firsthand that prevention efforts are essential for developing public health policies that curb the spread of vaccine-preventable diseases and safeguard the health of our communities. It has been proven that such an approach significantly lowers healthcare costs and helps build a system that, in the long term, ensures lower mortality rates and reduced disease transmission.

In Colombia, our national immunization schedule includes 21 vaccines that protect against 26 vaccine-preventable diseases—such as hepatitis B, rubella, measles, influenza, tuberculous meningitis, polio, and diphtheria, among others. Through the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI), Colombia ensures access to these vaccines for various population groups; however, continued efforts are needed to raise awareness and foster a culture that recognizes the importance of vaccination at every stage of life.

The challenge in Colombia extends beyond early childhood to include the adult population as well. There are successful models to look to, such as the influenza vaccination policies implemented by governments in North America and Europe. In the United States, for example, according to the CDC, vaccination reduces the risk of contracting influenza by 40% to 60%. During the 2019–2020 period, this prevented approximately 7.5 million illnesses, 105,000 hospitalizations, and 6,300 deaths.

In Colombia, there is a significant opportunity to establish an adult vaccination plan—extending beyond the scope of the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) for older adults—that addresses other diseases, much like the approach taken for COVID-19. The nation’s initial foray into adult vaccination during the pandemic demonstrated strengths in both access and vaccine administration; as of January of this year, more than 90 million doses against COVID-19 had been administered.

While we are progressing at a good pace, we cannot slow down—let alone take a step backward. We must adapt and leverage the new tools offered by digitalization, such as artificial intelligence and digital transformation centered on data mining. At VaxThera, we are developing a plan to track, in real time, all individuals participating in our vaccination programs. This requires the integrated efforts of all stakeholders within the ecosystem, with the goal of consolidating and proposing long-term, sustainable policies designed to safeguard human life and health—which must always remain our primary driving force.

At VaxThera, we reaffirm our commitment—day in and day out—to contributing to the independence of biological products and the health security of Colombia and Latin America through the research, development, and production of vaccines and biologics. Our manufacturing plant—scheduled for completion by the end of this year—and the Research and Development Laboratory we will soon inaugurate are key initiatives aimed at achieving this goal. During this World Immunization Week, I invite us all to continue taking action toward a safer life, remaining mindful of the importance of vaccination.