The Indian Institute of Health Management and Research in Jaipur has joined hands with the John Hopkin Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA to undertake research in the Economics of the COVID-19 vaccine. This collaboration has been devised to boost the capacity of health professionals to study and strategise the optimum usage of scarce resources.
Joined forces to devise economical solutions for COVID-19
The IIHMR University, Jaipur and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA jointly designed two new online courses for vaccine policymakers and program managers to use the tools of economics to optimise vaccine coverage during the challenges of Covid-19. Participants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Somalia were engaged in online learning sessions and workshops which covered the topics of vaccine demand and cost analysis for vaccine delivery. All sessions were designed to discuss key problems and their economic solutions and developed research proposals.
As per reports, this time, globally, the programme received around 400 applications, out of which about 230 participants were shortlisted. For the India programme, they received 64 applications out of which 53 participants were selected to attend the program. These participants work in different capacities in the field of immunization and vaccine delivery.
The power play of economics in the COVID-19 immunisation process
The President of IIHMR University assumed the role of the officiating speaker and stated, economics plays an important role in decision making while addressing the participants of the programme. These research studies would be useful for government and other key stakeholders in the contexts of Covid-19, he said.
He also concluded the virtual session “by acknowledging the efforts made by all resource persons and thanked them for a remarkable contribution in the course by conducting their sessions. He appreciated the efforts made by Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA for supporting the training program and thanked all participants for their active participation in the program that involved the great exchange of ideas between faculties and participants during the workshop.”
