South African Vaccination and Immunisation Centre (SAVIC)

English

Audience: health officials, health-care workers, scientists, academics and the vaccine industry.

The South African Vaccination and Immunisation Centre (SAVIC) was established in 2003 as a network of partners in the field of vaccination, immunization and vaccine-preventable diseases, and is an academic-public alliance between the University of Limpopo, Medunsa Campus, and the University of Antwerp, Belgium, with the South African Department of Health.

The mission of SAVIC is to improve the health of future generations by strengthening immunization programmes and services. In order to achieve this, SAVIC advocates improved education and training in the fields of vaccination, immunization programmes and services, and the dissemination of information on the epidemiology of vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs), nationally and abroad.

The SAVIC web site aims to be a prime source of information for promoting awareness of vaccine-preventable diseases, supporting local and regional immunization initiatives and promoting the use and benefits of vaccines. The web site contains information on the main Expanded Programme on Immunization and other VPDs. Resources include the South African Vaccinator’s Manual and WHO publications such as the Global Immunization Vision and Strategy (GIVS) and documents on vaccine safety. Articles on studies conducted on VPDs with specific reference to South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa can be found in the reports and publications section.

The web site is updated on a monthly basis with relevant published articles, whilst the pages on diseases and vaccines are updated when necessary.

Date of primary evaluation: February 2007