Vaccine Decision Support System (VADES)

Reliable, personalised, and verifiable vaccine recommendations

OVERVIEW

The Vaccine Decision Support System (VADES) is an expert module developed by SYADEM to automatically generate personalised, justified, verifiable, and directly usable vaccine recommendations for citizens, healthcare professionals, and health authorities.

Originally developed in 2009 and continuously updated, VADES powers digital immunisation pathways. It interprets complex scenarios from a structured vaccination history and a detailed health profile.

WHY VADES?

VADeS schema
  • Guidelines are complex, numerous, and evolving
  • They vary by age, comorbidities, occupation, travel, epidemic context, etc.
  • Messages to patients are often inconsistent, incomplete, or poorly applied
  • VADES bridges the gap between medical expertise and understandable guidance

HOW IT WORKS

Deterministic, rule-based engine

  • Written by expert vaccinologists
  • Clinically validated test scenarios
  • Approved by authorities with full change traceability
  • No generative AI — full transparency and auditability

For each vaccine-preventable disease, VADES determines

  • Vaccination status (“up to date”, “due”, “delayed”, “contraindicated”…)
  • Next dose date
  • Recommended vaccine type
  • Reference guidelines and sources
  • Who may prescribe and administer
  • Clinical justification
  • Eligibility for reimbursement

INPUT DATA

  • Structured vaccination history (NUVA-based)
  • Age, sex, pregnancy status
  • Medical, occupational, and social risk factors
  • Epidemiological/logistical context (shortages, high-risk zones…)
  • Objectives: routine, travel, post-exposure…

MENTOR: THE VADES USER INTERFACE

Mentor is available in two versions: one for citizens, one for professionals. Mentor is a standalone web app that harnesses the full power of VADES to deliver a personalised vaccination assessment in four simple steps, with no data storage.

User inputs:

  • 1. Demographics age, sex, location
  • 2. Health profile pregnancy, chronic illness, exposure
  • 3. Vaccination history doses received, dates, products

User receives:

  • 4. Full report generation status by disease, recommended schedule, suitable vaccines, authorised providers, and reference links.

TECHNICAL FEATURES

  • Deterministic, fully documented system (one verifiable line per rule)
  • Tree-structured rule model (branches, leaves, prioritisation)
  • Multilingual, multi-country RESTful API with full docs
  • Compatible with FHIR, EHRs, national records, and clinical software

ADDED VALUE

  • Reduces errors in recommendation implementation
  • Continuously updated by subject-matter experts
  • Ensures consistency across stakeholders
  • Supports ongoing medical education
  • Saves time during consultations

INTEGRATION OPTIONS

  • Delivered as a SaaS platform
  • Custom parameterisation by country/region/institution
  • Test case design with national authorities
  • Interfaces for citizens, professionals, and decision-makers