[Vaccinations as a key to pandemic management - Lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic]

Abstract

Pandemics and epidemic outbreaks caused by emerging pathogens can usually only be curbed in the longterm through establishment of protective population-wide immunity. With the unprecedented rapid development and supply of highly effective vaccines against COVID-19, science and industry delivered the critical medical breakthrough for the successful management of the COVID-19 pandemic. By May 2023, WHO could end the public health emergency. Nevertheless, the pandemic and its consequences for medicine, science, and society continue to reverberate. This article reviews at the development and implementation of COVID-19 vaccines, focusing on the situation in Germany, and seeks to draw lessons from the past three years to improve our readiness to combat future outbreaks and pandemics more effectively.

Abb. 1

Herkömmliche vs. beschleunigte Impfstoffentwicklung. Die traditionelle Impfstoffentwicklung ist ein langwieriger und kostspieliger Prozess. Für die COVID-19-Impfstoffe wurden regulatorische Verfahren beschleunigt und Prüfphasen überlappend durchgeführt, wodurch die Prüfverfahren auf ⅒ der sonst üblichen Zeit verkürzt werden konnten.