The first wave results of the “Vacinómetro,” an initiative by the Portuguese Society of Pulmonology and the Portuguese Association of General and Family Medicine, reveal that 49.7% of individuals aged 85 or older received the vaccine in the campaign’s first month.
Within the groups recommended by the Directorate-General of Health (DGS), the “Vacinómetro” indicates a comprehensive increase in vaccination coverage compared to the previous year.
The survey shows that 39% of individuals aged 65 or older and 44.6% of people with chronic illnesses have been vaccinated against the flu, up from 32% for both groups in the same period last year.
Among priority groups, 32.8% of healthcare professionals with direct patient contact have been vaccinated, up from 18.5% in October 2024, and 16.1% of individuals aged 60 to 64 years have been vaccinated, compared to 14.4% the previous year.
The only exception to this increasing trend is pregnant women: in October 2024, 54.2% had been vaccinated, a figure that has now decreased to 38.6%.
As for children aged 6 to 24 months, newly eligible for free vaccination this year, 26.2% have received the flu vaccine.
More than half of the vaccinated individuals (62%) opted for co-administration with the COVID-19 vaccine.
Consistent with previous years, medical advice remains the principal motivator for vaccination, particularly in instances of pregnancy and chronic illness, with seven out of ten respondents citing it.
Approximately a quarter of respondents reported getting vaccinated on their initiative, while 14.6% cited work-related initiatives, 9.4% were notified by the National Health Service for scheduling, and 2.9% were aware of being in a risk group for certain conditions.
Regionally, the “Vacinómetro” shows that among those aged 65 or older who have been vaccinated, 47.8% are in Alentejo, 44.9% in Centro, 39.7% in Lisbon, and 39.2% in regions where vaccination coverage increased compared to last year’s first month of the campaign.
Conversely, fewer individuals have been vaccinated in the Autonomous Region of Madeira (23.8% compared to 56% last year) and the Algarve (14.8% compared to 18.9% last year), whereas in the Azores, despite remaining among the lowest (17.1%), vaccination coverage more than doubled compared to October 2024, when only 7.1% of the population in the DGS recommendations had received the vaccine.
Established in 2009, the “Vacinómetro” is conducted through fieldwork carried out from October 15 to 20, via telephone surveys, enabling real-time monitoring of flu vaccination coverage in priority groups recommended by the DGS.
The seasonal flu and COVID-19 vaccination campaign began on September 23 and is ongoing in pharmacies and National Health Service (SNS) units.
