The function and importance of home-based records (HBRs) in immunization service delivery has been described and practical guidelines for HBR design released by the WHO (http://www.who.int/immunization/monitoring_surveillance/routine/homebasedrecords/en/). The annotated bibliography attached here attempted to bring together available literature on home-based records as a form of personal health record supportive of primary health care including literature describing corrective interventions as well as studies demonstrating impact of home-based records on behaviour, knowledge or health service utilization. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the existing literature describing interventions to improve the availability, retention and/or appropriate utilization of personal health records, in general, and home-based vaccination records more specifically, continues to mature. General findings that may be of interest follow.
While the available evidence reveals more questions than answers, opportunities abound for developing and implementing innovative solutions to improve the effectiveness and impact of home-based records as a form of personal health record supportive of primary health care.
This bibliography is meant to be a dynamic document that will be updated moving forward. If you are aware of operational research that resides in the peer-review or grey literature that is not noted in the bibliography, please share by way of reply to this posting.