The mission of the Comprehensive Family Immunization Unit (FPL/IM) is to promote and coordinate technical cooperation and alliances to support, as part of the guarantee of healthcare as a right to all, the efforts from the Member States to achieve the sustainable and equitable reduction of morbidity and mortality from vaccine-preventable diseases (VPD) through control and elimination strategies to improve the quality and life expectancy of towns in the Americas.
The actions of the Comprehensive Family Immunization Unit have been framed under the Regional Immunization Action Plan (RIAP), approved by PAHO's Directing Council in 2015, which establishes the following as areas of technical cooperation: sustain the achievements, address the unfinished agenda; tackle new challenges; and contribute to the managerial and operational strengthening of immunization programs in the countries. With this job, the Immunization unit seeks to reduce inequalities, strengthen the public health infrastructure, develop a culture of prevention, secure political commitment and seek excellence in technical cooperation.
The unit is organized into essential groups that respond to the current characteristics of immunization programs:
Eradication and Elimination of
Vaccine-preventable Diseases
- Measles
- Neonatal tetanus
- Poliomyelitis
- Rubella and CRS
Accelerated Vaccine-preventable
Diseases Control
- Pertussis
- Tuberculosis
- Varicella
- Yellow fever
Public Health in
Immunization
- EPI planning
- Equity in immunization: Municipalities with low coverage
- EPI effective management
- EPI technical resources
- Sub-regional meetings: Caribbean EPI managers
- International EPI evaluations
- Vaccination Week in the Americas
New Vaccines and
Impact Assessment
- Cholera
- Dengue
- HPV
- Meningococcal
- Pneumococcal
- Rotavirus
- ProVac initiative
Surveillance, Strategic Information
and Transversal Functions
- Data collection, data quality and analysis
- Regional and national observatories: Data and statistics
- Dissemination of information and publications
- Epidemiological surveillance and the regional VPD laboratory network
- Vaccine safety
Coordination, Strategic Planning
and Policy on Immunization
- Regional plan of action on immunization (RIAP)
- FPL/IM program coordination & management
- Coordination among PAHO programs
- Joint work with countries
- Partner alliances
- National laws for immunization
