Do Tuscan people adhere to meningococcal C vaccination during an emergency campaign?

Objectives: Tuscany region (Italy) recorded a rise in the number of meningococcal disease cases between January 2015 and February 2016, (52 cases) compared to 2014 (16 cases). The aim of this study was to describe the emergency meningococcal C (MenC) vaccination programme in Tuscany and the population's adherence to the activities performed in the Local Health Unit (LHU) of Florence.

Methods: The MenC vaccination programme and the planning of the prevention and communication activities were analysed in the LHU of Florence. As an indicator of population's adherence, the vaccination coverage (VC) during the emergency campaign was investigated and adverse drug reactions (ADR) surveillance was reported.

Results: The communication campaign included a dedicated toll-free telephone number, press releases (newspapers, radio, television, websites), and informative letters addressed to mayors, secondary schools, and sports associations. Citizens aged 11-20 years were the primary target of the campaign. Due to the high incidence of cases among older people, the vaccination was extended to subjects over 45 years. The population's adherence to the vaccination campaign was satisfactory: VC reached 47.1% for the primary target. The ADR reporting rate (3.1/10,000) on meningococcal vaccine in our study confirmed the safety of the vaccination.

Conclusions: In 2017, only 10 cases of invasive meningococcal diseases (IMD) were reported, suggesting the effectiveness of the immunization campaign. Similar VC during emergency MenC vaccination programmes have been reached in other Italian regions and other EU countries, too. The achievement of greater vaccination coverage is restricted by a sentiment of hesitancy towards vaccines among the general population.