Differences in vaccinations in European Union.

The European Union (EU) currently has 27 Member States, each with its own history, characteristics and habits. The National Health Services of most of these countries have different vaccination systems, different vaccine recommendations and different schedules of vaccine administration, which means that immunization is not considered in the same way and, at least for some antigens, vaccination coverage does not always meet changing medical needs. Together with a lack of political will concerning prevention in childhood, a poor understanding or false perceptions on the part of the general public (and even healthcare workers), and the inadequacies and heterogeneity of the vaccination systems can all be considered barriers to vaccinations in Europe. The most important limitations are those relating to the evaluation of vaccination coverage, the lack of active reminder systems to pick up patients who miss appointments, and the monitoring of adverse events. A common programme designed to overcome these limitations could be beneficial in promoting vaccinations everywhere, above all because active measures by the Health Authorities to demonstrate the importance they attribute to vaccination could convince still uncertain parents to have their children vaccinated.