Frontline health workers: training needs assessment on immunisation programme. An EU/EEA-based survey

Background: As part of continuing medical education, frontline healthcare workers (FHWs) have to maintain high standards of competence and knowledge. It is particularly true in the field of vaccination and vaccine acceptance, where knowledge and technologies evolve rapidly. Methods: For this reason, we developed an anonymous 47-item web-based survey aimed to collect data about recent existing courses and FHWs’ knowledge, learning needs and preferences for future courses, both in vaccinology and vaccine acceptance at the European level. The survey was conducted from October to November 2021, and disseminated through the Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER) and European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC) networks by email. Results: A total of 160 FHWs (63% females, 61% physicians) completed the questionnaire. Approximately half of the sample considered themselves skilled in almost all the explored areas considering vaccinology and vaccine acceptance. However, respondents were interested in attending courses regarding research and science and how to deal with misinformation and disinformation for the future. Moreover, an online version of the course, or at least a mixed format (in person and online), is considered the preferred format. Lastly, the most supportive materials in dealing with vaccinology and vaccine acceptance were short courses on specific topics. Conclusions: Our results are relevant to inform professional development staff in order to plan and implement more targeted courses in terms of educational training programmes and teaching formats that better match the interests and needs of FHWs.