Electronic immunization registries in Latin America: progress and lessons learned.

Most of the current vaccination coverage monitoring in Latin America relies on aggregated data. Improved monitoring has been shown to result in better coverage. Taking advantage of current information and communication technologies, the use of electronic immunization registries (EIRs) can facilitate coverage monitoring in terms of particularity (at the level of the individual), timeliness, and accuracy. Countries in Latin America are rapidly developing and implementing national EIRs to improve the monitoring of immunization coverage. These countries are using a variety of approaches toward system conception and development; integration with larger health information systems; different modalities for data collection, entry, and transmission; and other key features. Some countries are exploring linkages with mHealth (mobile health) for data collection and for automated recall/reminders. Evaluating EIRs and sharing experiences are important to streamlining and improving national EIR development, implementation, and use, and to ensuring its sustainability.