In the vaccination strategy against the coronavirus, cities can learn from each other and thus improve their services. This is the finding after an international exchange of experience between the cities of Bratislava, Brno, Leeds, Leipzig, Poznan, Stuttgart and Vienna.

“The virus knows no borders, so cross-border solidarity is needed,” said Stuttgart’s deputy mayor Alexandra Sußmann after the online meeting with city experts in February.

The exchange focused on how the participating cities deal with the supply shortages of Covid-19 vaccines and how the vaccination centres are organised.

Mobile vaccination teams in Stuttgart a success

“The international comparison shows common challenges and solutions,” said Jan Steffen Jürgensen, head of the municipal hospital Klinikum Stuttgart. “The British colleagues from Leeds were comparatively strong in reaching out to all social groups in a diverse society and also involving resident doctors very early.”

From the perspective of the other cities, the high rate of older people in Stuttgart and Baden-Württemberg among those vaccinated was seen as a great success, Jürgensen said. “Our mobile vaccination teams proved very effective in this.” Up to seven mobile teams in Stuttgart travel to nursery homes and care facilities and vaccinate residents on site.

The cities want to continue their dialogue.

Photo: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Unsplash