COVID-19 autumn booster vaccinations 2022-23: Cohort identification methodology

NHS England Vaccination Deployment Programme’s (VDP) Tech and Data Workstream, commissioned the NHS Digital Vaccination Programme to flow patient identifiable data to National Immunisation Management System (NIMS) to be used for COVID-19 autumn booster call/recall, monitoring and reporting for autumn 2022.

NHS Digital Vaccination programme then commissioned NHS Digital’s Cohorting as a Service (CaaS) to provide patient identifiable cohorts for the COVID-19 clinically at risk groups as defined in tables 3 and 4 of the Green Book chapter 14a to the NHS Digital Vaccination Programme.

A patient cohort has been created and made available in NHS Digital's Data Processing Service (DPS) where the NHS England Vaccination Deployment Programme (VDP) transfers it to the National Immunisation Management System (NIMS), where it will be used as the basis of the national call/recall process. The data will be available to the NHS VDP to flow to the NIMS and Foundry for use in call/recall, reporting and monitoring for the 2022 autumn booster campaign.

The clinical at-risk groups within scope of this digital cohort development (as specified by NHS England) are below.

Adults aged 16 years and over with:

• Chronic respiratory disease
• Chronic heart disease and vascular disease 
• Chronic kidney disease
• Chronic liver disease
• Chronic neurological disease
• Diabetes mellitus and other endocrine disorders
• Immunosuppression
• Asplenia or dysfunction of the spleen
• Morbidly obese
• Severe mental illness

Children 5 to 15 years inclusive with:

• Chronic respiratory disease 
• Chronic heart conditions
• Chronic conditions of the kidney, liver or digestive system
• Chronic neurological disease 
• Endocrine disorders
• Immunosuppression
• Asplenia or dysfunction of the spleen
• Serious genetic abnormalities that affect a number of systems

This document outlines NHS Digital’s Cohorting as a Service's (CaaS) approach to deliver this cohort using established methodologies. It also highlights any divergence from the clinical criteria held within Chapter 14a of the Green Book and associated assumptions.