New guide sets out how to deliver successful national vaccination programmes

CoronavirusHealth and medicineWorld

A guide for delivering safe and effective national COVID vaccination programmes is being rolled out around the world to help countries with mass immunisations.

Researchers at Loughborough University and the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors (CIEHF) have put together a 10-step plan which sets out how to deliver accessible and simple national vaccination schemes.

The HFE principles will be used to identify and describe work systems, improve work systems and processes, and adapt with continuous learning from experience to achieve sustainable change.

The programme, Vaccinating a Nation – 10 Human Factors and Ergonomics Principles, is being translated into Persian and Spanish, two of the most widely spoken languages, in order to reach a wide global audience.

Researchers have also created an interactive infographic to support the guide.

Professor Sue Hignett, of Loughborough’s Design School, who co-led the project, said: “This guidance aims to support the safe delivery of COVID-19 vaccines by considering manufacturing and distribution, booking vaccinations, administration of the vaccination, and patient follow-up.

“The challenges and requirements may vary, so we offer 10 principles to support systems thinking for vaccination delivery by considering standardisation, simplification, and inclusive design (accessibility and usability)."

ENDS

Notes for editors

Press release reference number: 21/54

Loughborough is one of the country’s leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines.

It has been awarded five stars in the independent QS Stars university rating scheme, named the best university in the world for sports-related subjects in the 2020 QS World University Rankings and University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times University Guide 2019.

Loughborough is in the top 10 of every national league table, being ranked 7th in the Guardian University League Table 2021, 5th in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2020 and 6th in The UK Complete University Guide 2021.

Loughborough is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’ and is in the top 10 in England for research intensity. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, Loughborough has been awarded seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes.

The Loughborough University London campus is based on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and offers postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities. It is home to influential thought leaders, pioneering researchers and creative innovators who provide students with the highest quality of teaching and the very latest in modern thinking.