Impact of COVID-19 on childhood vaccination counts up to week 49, 2020
Updated 14 September 2021
Applies to England
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Introduction to the eighth report
This eighth report, presenting vaccination counts data up to week 49 of 2020 (compared with the same period in 2019) in the 3 charts below, should be read in conjunction with the last published full report: Impact of COVID-19 on childhood vaccination counts to week 47 and vaccine coverage to September 2020 in England: interim analyses, HPR 14(23).
The charts below show that:
- the number of dose 1 Hexavalent vaccine doses delivered in England in week 49 (Figure 1) were lower than during the same week in 2019, although the difference between 2019 and 2020 counts was less than in previous weeks (Figures 1 and 3)
- the number of dose 1 MMR vaccine doses delivered in England in week 49 (Figure 1) remains consistent with the number of MMR counts observed during the same week in 2019 (Figures 2 and 3)
- overall vaccination counts for Hexavalent and MMR vaccine remain lower, by 3.7 and 2.1 percentage points, by week 49 in 2020, than the overall vaccination counts by week 49 in 2019
It should be noted that the vaccine count data presented here is a proxy measure for the vaccine coverage data that is being reported on a monthly basis.
Hexavalent vaccination counts to week 49
Figure 1 below shows dose 1 Hexavalent vaccination counts in infants younger than 6 months in The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) practices in England, by week, in 2019 and 2020. School holidays for the 2020 calendar year are shown in grey (see HPR 14(23) report for full notes on this graph).
MMR vaccination counts to week 49
Figure 2 below shows MMR 1 vaccination counts in infants aged 12 to 18 months in TPP practices in England, by week, in 2019 and 2020. School holidays for the 2020 calendar year are shown in grey (see HPR 14(23) report for full notes on this graph).
Percentage change in vaccination counts in 2020 compared with 2019, to week 49
Figure 3 below shows percentage change in dose 1 Hexavalent vaccination counts (in infants under 6 months), and MMR 1 vaccination counts (in infants aged 12 to 18 months), in 2020 compared to 2019, by week, in TPP practices in England.
Methods
Aggregated weekly vaccination counts from 2019 and 2020 for dose 1 Hexavalent (diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), polio, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) and Hepatitis B) delivered to infants 6 months and younger, and MMR1 (first dose of measles, mumps and rubella vaccine) to children between the ages of 12 and 18 months, were provided by the general practice (GP) information technology (IT) supplier, TPP. Weekly trends in vaccination counts were compared between 2019 and 2020.
TPP represents approximately 38% of data for all GP practices in England and some regions are less represented than others.