New Delhi: take away vaccination cards of children and pregnant women, struggling to control the next stroke and other similar discomforts may soon become a thing of the past. After the success of the Co-WIN platform, the government has now replicated it to establish an electronic registry for routine vaccinations. Called YOU WINthe program to digitize India‘s Universal Immunization Program (IPU) has been launched in pilot mode in two districts of each state and union territory.
The platform will be used to register and vaccinate all pregnant women, register the outcome of their delivery, register all newborn deliveries, administer birth doses and all subsequent vaccination events, official sources told PTI.
The platform that Co-WIN replicates, which has served as the “digital backbone” for India’s COVID-19 vaccination programme, was launched on January 11 in 65 districts.
The U-WIN will be the sole source of information for immunization services, updating vaccination status, delivery outcome, RI session planning and reports such as antigen coverage, etc. “There will be digital records of all pregnant women and newborns.” for the individualized follow-up of vaccination, reminders of next doses and follow-up of desertions”, explained an official.
“Health care workers and program managers will be able to generate real-time data on routine immunization sessions and vaccination coverage for better vaccine planning and distribution,” the official added. For pregnant women and children, acknowledgment of vaccinations and immunization card linked to ABHA ID (Ayushman Bharat health account) will be generated and all states and districts will be able to access a common database to track and vaccinate beneficiaries.
Also, through the platform, citizens can check nearby ongoing routine vaccination sessions and book appointments, the official told PTI. All states and UTs have been sensitized on the U-WIN functionalities and objectives for the pilot in 65 districts and health care staff and workers have been trained in all U-WIN modules.
“With this, the entire vaccination system will be digitized, including the records, which will facilitate the follow-up of the beneficiaries.
Immunization records under UIP are maintained manually as of now. So this will take the hassle out of keeping a physical record. It will allow the digitization of the session planning and the updating of the vaccination status in real time. Beneficiaries could book slots for vaccination in advance. In addition, it will allow mobility.
Once the entire immunization schedule is digitized, recipients will get certificates on the spot and can also download them if they want. These certificates will be stored in digi-lockers,” an official explained.
An effective surveillance system will help build an evidence base to enable the planning and deployment of effective interventions.
