‘As a clinician, this weighs heavily on me’: Immunisation milestone exposes gaps in preventive health

In marking RSV Awareness Week, Dr Krishan Thiru, Medical Director, Pfizer ANZ, points to the RSV immunisation program’s early impact, with hospital admissions reduced by nearly half in its first year. He attributes this to a successful alignment of scientific evidence, policy readiness, and system capability where prevention was translated into practice at scale.

From there, the discussion turns to what such outcomes expose about the structure of health systems, where prevention must still compete for attention within models largely built around acute care.

Dr Thiru also reflects on Health Technology Assessment (HTA) frameworks, the widening gaps in capturing the full value of innovation and the significant toll on patients. The conversation shifts to whether broader societal gains, including productivity impacts, should be embedded more explicitly in Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) decision-making on cost-effectiveness and pricing.

Finally, amid ongoing declines in vaccination rates for a fifth year in a row, as voiced by Health Minister Mark Butler, Dr Thiru considers the role of the National Immunisation Strategy (NIS) in rebuilding confidence and sustaining momentum in preventive health.

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