Management of the vaccination campaign in a population of frail older outpatients affected by cognitive or endocrinological conditions: a pilot study in Italy.
Nicola Veronese, Francesco Saverio Ragusa, Pascal Roberto Titone, Laura Vernuccio, Giuseppina Catanese, Maria Angela Randazzo, Mario Palermo, Giovanna Di Bella, Pasquale Mansueto, Ligia J Dominguez, Mario Barbagallo
Author Information
Nicola Veronese: Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Geriatrics Section, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy. nicola.veronese@unipa.it.
Francesco Saverio Ragusa: Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Geriatrics Section, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
Pascal Roberto Titone: Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Geriatrics Section, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
Laura Vernuccio: Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Geriatrics Section, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
Giuseppina Catanese: Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Geriatrics Section, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
Maria Angela Randazzo: Prevention and Epidemiology Unit, Palermo Local Health Authority, Palermo, Italy.
Mario Palermo: Sicilian Health Department, Public Health and Environmental Risks Service, Palermo, Italy.
Giovanna Di Bella: Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Geriatrics Section, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
Pasquale Mansueto: Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Geriatrics Section, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
Ligia J Dominguez: Department of Medicine and Surgery, "Kore" University of Enna, Enna, Italy.
Mario Barbagallo: Department of Health Promotion, Mother and Child Care, Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Geriatrics Section, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.
Vaccination, particularly against pneumococcus and influenza, is a low-cost primary prevention, useful to avoid hard complications, particularly among frail older people. In this pilot study, we aimed to assess the effect of a strategy for influenza and pneumococcal vaccination for outpatients mainly affected by cognitive or endocrinological conditions, evaluating what could stimulate or demotivate vaccination among older people. This study was conducted during the 2023-2024 influenza season at the outpatient clinics in Palermo, Italy. A total 76 patients were included. More than half of the patients could be considered as pre-frail and about 20% frail, according to a comprehensive geriatric evaluation. Among patients, 46.05% received only vaccination against pneumococcus, 28.95% both vaccinations, and 25.0% only against influenza. Compared with the previous seasons, a 19.5% increase of influenza and 90.2% of pneumococcal vaccine uptake was observed. Side effects of vaccination were the main reason of the previous rejection, namely 76.9% for influenza and 53.8% for anti-pneumococcal vaccination. In conclusion, our study indicates how a new vaccination strategy in different settings could be feasible. Proposing influenza and pneumococcal vaccination for frail older outpatients could be an effective instrument to improve immunization coverage that is still low among older people.
