Background:

People affected by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have a higher risk of invasive pneumococcal disease. Therefore, vaccination against streptococcus pneumoniae is recommended for that group. The objective of this study was to analyze the impact of implementing a hospital appointment to assess vaccination status as part of the vaccination schedule of HIV patients.

Methods:

We carried out a quasi-experimental uncontrolled before and after study with a sampling of consecutive cases of HIV patients referred to our department from November 1, 2014 to June 30, 2018. The study compared the vaccination coverage on the date of the appointment for an assessment of their vaccination status in our department and after the appointment. The analysis used the chi-squared test and the values on the date of the first appointment were taken as a reference.

Results:

209 patients were analyzed, and a statistically significant improvement was observed regarding their vaccination coverage: 2.9% of the patients had been vaccinated on the date in which they made an appointment for assessment by our department, and 88.0% were vaccinated after they left (OR (95%CI): 30.7 (13.92-67.58)) with the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine; and 16.3% had been vaccinated on the date they made the first appointment vs. 83.7% after they came to the appointment (OR (95%CI): 5.2 (3.76-7.04)) with the 23-valent polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccine.

Conclusions:

Implementing a hospital appointment for vaccination is an effective intervention to improve vaccination coverage against streptococcus pneumoniae in HIV patients.

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