The protective effect of vaccines can generally be measured directly by markers of immunogenicity, efficacy or reduction of disease incidence rates. Safety can only be measured indirectly by the absence of adverse events following immunization. The lack of a common terminology and shared understanding of what exactly is under investigation has caused much confusion amoung professionals and everyone considering to be immunized.

In the Brighton Collaboration, we have established a global network of qualified experts with the aim of providing high quality vaccine safety information. We create methodological standards for accurate risk assessment. This includes standardized case definitions of adverse events following immunizations (AEFI), guidelines for collection, analysis and presentation of vaccine safety data, and template protocols for study design.

Through constant development of these tools, we provide investigators with an up-to-date reference for their use. Our aim is that studies conducted using these reference tools will give public health decision makers the most accurate results available.