Methodologies to measure the coverage of vitamin A supplementation: a systematic review

Abstract

Countries are increasingly transitioning from event-based vitamin A supplementation (VAS) distribution to delivery through routine health system contacts, shifting also to administrative, electronic-based monitoring tools, a process that brings certain limitations affecting the quality of administrative VAS coverage. At present, there is no standardised methodology for measuring the coverage of VAS delivered through routine health services. To address this gap, we conducted a systematic review of the literature to identify and recommend methods to measure VAS coverage, with the aim of providing guidance to countries on the collection of consistent data for planning, monitoring and evaluating VAS programmes integrated into routine health systems. We searched the PubMed®, Embase®, Scopus, Google Scholar and World Health Organization (WHO) Global Index Medicus databases for studies published from 1 January 2000 to 1 January 2021, reporting original data on VAS coverage and methodologies used for measurement. We screened 2371 original titles and abstracts, assessed twenty-seven full-text articles and ultimately included eighteen studies. All but two studies used a coverage cluster survey (CCS) design to measure VAS coverage, adapting the WHO Vaccination Coverage Cluster Surveys methodology, by modifying sample size and sampling parameters. Annual two-dose VAS coverage was reported from only four studies. Until electronic-based systems to collect and analyse VAS data are equipped to measure routine two-dose VAS coverage using administrative data, CCSs that comply with the 2018 WHO Vaccination Coverage Cluster Surveys Reference Manual represent the gold-standard method for effective VAS programme monitoring.

Keywords

• Epidemiologic methods
• Epidemiologic monitoring
• Systematic review
• Vitamin A