Issue 1407: January 23, 2019
TOP STORIES
IAC HANDOUTS
WORLD NEWS
FEATURED RESOURCES
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
TOP STORIES
FDA has approved expanded use of Sanofi's Adacel Tdap vaccine for repeat dose
On January 14, Sanofi announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had approved the expanded use of its Tdap vaccine, Adacel, for a repeat dose in people 10 through 64 years of age, 8 years or more after the first dose of Tdap.*
* Note: ACIP has recommended a dose of either Tdap product (Adacel or Boostrix [GSK]) for women in each pregnancy since 2011.
Access the package insert.
Access the Sanofi press release: FDA Approves Expanded Use of Adacel (Tdap) Vaccine for Repeat Vaccination.
Back to top
CDC reports 3 additional pediatric deaths from influenza in the U.S., bringing total to 19; keep vaccinating your patients
CDC has reported 3 more pediatric deaths from influenza in the U.S. as of the week ending January 12, for a total of 19. Last season, there was a record-setting number of pediatric deaths in the U.S. (185), so be sure to protect all your patients for whom vaccination is recommended.
CDC has stated in its Weekly U.S. Influenza Surveillance Report, FluView, that the geographic spread of influenza in Guam and 30 states was reported as widespread; Puerto Rico and 16 states reported regional activity; three states reported local activity; and the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and one state reported sporadic activity.
Influenza vaccination is recommended for everyone six months of age and older. If you don't provide influenza vaccination in your clinic, please recommend vaccination to your patients and refer them to a clinic or pharmacy that provides vaccines or to the HealthMap Vaccine Finder to locate sites near their workplaces or homes that offer influenza vaccination services.
Following is a list of resources related to influenza disease and vaccination for healthcare professionals and the public:
Back to top
IAC Spotlight! Discover how to find what's new and updated on immunize.org
The Immunization Action Coalition's flagship website, immunize.org, is extremely large with many web sections and resources. If you are wondering how to easily find what has been recently added or updated, here are three ways to find what's new:
- Bookmark www.immunize.org/new. This page features a continually updated chronological listing of new and revised IAC materials, including patient handouts and staff educational materials, VISs, and web sections.
- Scroll to the bottom of any page and click on "What's New or Updated at IAC" to reach the same immunize.org/new page.
- Click on "Immunization News" from the rotating box at the top of the home page. You will then be able to access "What's New at IAC."
Of course, as an IAC Express subscriber, you are also always notified of new and updated items in your weekly issue!
Back to top
Eleven healthcare organizations join IAC's Influenza Vaccination Honor Roll for mandatory healthcare worker vaccination
There are now 816 organizations enrolled in IAC's Influenza Vaccination Honor Roll. The honor roll recognizes hospitals, long-term care facilities (LTCFs), medical practices, pharmacies, professional organizations, health departments, and government entities that have taken a stand for patient safety by implementing mandatory influenza vaccination policies for healthcare personnel.
Since December 5, when IAC Express last reported on the Influenza Vaccination Honor Roll, eleven additional healthcare organizations have been enrolled.
IAC urges qualifying healthcare organizations to apply by visiting the Application page.
Newly added healthcare organizations, hospitals, government agencies, and medical practices
- Anderson Regional Medical Center, Meridian, MS
- Centennial Peaks Hospital, Louisville, CO
- Chapa de Indian Health Services, Auburn, CA
- Christian Health Care Center, Wycoff, NJ (hospital and LTCF)
- Miners Colfax Medical Center, Raton, NM (hospital and LTCF)
- Orleans County Health Department, Albion, NY
- Tidelands Health, Murrells Inlet, SC
- St. David's Round Rock Medical Center Hospital, Round Rock, TX
- Skagit Regional Health, Mount Vernon, WA
Related Links
Back to top
CDC requests nominations for its Childhood Immunization Champion Awards; submissions due by February 8
CDC and the Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) are happy to announce that the nomination materials for the 2019 CDC Childhood Immunization Champion Award are ready. AIM joins CDC this year as a new partner on the Champions award. The CDC Childhood Immunization Champion Award is an annual award that recognizes individuals who make a significant contribution toward improving public health through their work in childhood immunization. Each year, the CDC Childhood Immunization Champion honors up to one person from each of the 50 U.S. states, 8 U.S. Territories and Freely Associated States, and the District of Columbia.
CDC and AIM would appreciate your help in promoting this award to your constituents or members. Champions can come from a variety of settings. Please ask your constituents to consider all kinds of nominees, including parent advocates, community members, and healthcare professionals who go above and beyond their expected responsibilities to ensure that children in their communities get their vaccines on time. Self-nominations are welcome.
Nominations should be submitted to the immunization program manager in the state or territory where the nominee resides by February 8. Program managers will review all nominations received and select one for submission to CDC by March 1. CDC will review nominations for each state and announce awardees during National Infant Immunization Week, April 27–May 4.
Access the nomination packet (10-page PDF; includes contact information for the immunization program managers).
For more information about the CDC Childhood Immunization Champion Award, please visit www.cdc.gov/vaccines/champions. You can access information about the 2012–2018 winners from the bottom on this page.
If you have any questions please email IMZChamps@cdc.gov.
Back to top
National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit soliciting nominations for its 2019 Immunization Excellence Awards
The National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit (NAIIS) is soliciting nominations for the 2019 NAIIS Immunization Excellence Awards. The 2019 awards recognize individuals and organizations that have made extraordinary contributions towards improving vaccination rates within their communities during 2018. The awards focus on individuals and organizations that exemplify the meaning of the "immunization neighborhood" (collaboration, coordination, and communication among immunization stakeholders dedicated to meeting the immunization needs of the patient and protecting the community from vaccine-preventable diseases). Unless an award criteria is specifically focused on influenza, it is the intent of the Summit to recognize broader adult immunization activities.
A National Winner will be selected for each award category, and where appropriate, an Honorable Mention recipient. The winners will be presented with their awards at the NAIIS meeting to be held May 14–16 in Atlanta; the awards ceremony will be May 15. The national winner in each category will be invited to present their programs at the National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit meeting.
Access information on the award categories and the nomination form.
Related Links
Back to top
IAC HANDOUTS
IAC updates "Which Vaccines Do I Need Today?," a checklist for adult patients to help with assessing their immunization needs
IAC has updated Which Vaccines Do I Need Today?, a self-administered screening checklist for adults. Changes were made include "homeless" as one of the indications for vaccination against hepatitis A, and to add treatment with eculizumab (Soliris) as an indicator for both MenACWY and MenB vaccines.
Access IAC's Screening Checklists web page for more screening questionnaires for use by healthcare professionals and their patients.
IAC's Handouts for Patients & Staff web section offers healthcare professionals and the public more than 250 FREE English-language handouts (many also available in translation), which we encourage website users to print out, copy, and distribute widely.
Back to top
IAC revises its easy-to-read Q&A handout for adult patients titled "Protect Yourself from Whooping Cough ... Get Vaccinated!"
IAC recently revised its easy-to-read Q&A handout for adult patients titled Protect Yourself from Whooping Cough ... Get Vaccinated! Information was added about the need for pregnant women to receive a Tdap booster during the third trimester of each pregnancy.
Access all IAC easy-to-read Q&A sheets for patients and parents.
Back to top
IAC updates parent piece, "Hepatitis B Shots Are Recommended for All New Babies"
IAC has updated Hepatitis B Shots Are Recommended for All New Babies. Hepatitis B Vaccine Helps Protect Your Baby’s Future! with some new data. This handout is intended to help expectant and new parents understand why a dose of hepatitis B vaccine is recommended for newborns.
Access IAC's hepatitis B-related educational materials for healthcare professionals, patients, and parents.
Back to top
IAC reformats "Rotavirus: Questions and Answers"
IAC recently reformatted its handout for patients and healthcare professionals titled Rotavirus: Questions and Answers. This handout was only reformatted and reviewed by CDC; no edits were made to the text.
Access all "Questions and Answers" handouts for patients and healthcare professionals on 18 recommended vaccines.
Back to top
WORLD NEWS
CDC reports on typhoid fever outbreak in Zimbabwe
CDC published Notes from the Field: Typhoid Fever Outbreak—Harare, Zimbabwe, October 2017–February 2018 in the January 18 issue of MMWR (pages 44–45). Selected text from the article is reprinted below.
On October 16, 2017, the Harare City Health Department (HCHD) in Zimbabwe identified a suspected typhoid fever (typhoid) case in a resident of Harare’s Mbare suburb. Typhoid is a potentially fatal illness caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (Typhi). HCHD initiated an investigation and identified a cluster of 17 suspected typhoid cases...
As of February 24, 2018 (the most recent publicly available data), 3,187 suspected and 191 confirmed cases were identified, with no reported deaths among confirmed cases....
The combination of poor water quality and sanitation and urban overcrowding continues to be a persistent driver of seasonal outbreaks of waterborne diseases in Harare. Although localized WASH [water, sanitation, and hygiene] interventions, such as those described here, serve to disrupt local transmission, comprehensive measures will be needed to improve the water treatment and delivery system in Harare. One such measure that was informed by the epidemiologic data is a Gavi-funded vaccination campaign using typhoid conjugate vaccine scheduled for January–February 2019, targeting 350,000 persons; this is the first use of typhoid conjugate vaccine and the first outbreak response vaccination campaign in Africa. The goal of this effort will be to disrupt transmission, thereby providing time for implementation of sustainable and widespread WASH interventions.
Related Link
- MMWR main page provides access to MMWR Weekly, MMWR Recommendations and Reports, MMWR Surveillance Summaries, and MMWR Supplements
Back to top
Drones start delivering vaccines to remote areas in the world
In December, the New York Times published an article titled An Island Nation’s Health Experiment: Vaccines Delivered by Drone. This story describes the benefits and problems of delivering vaccines by drone to remote locations with logistical problems. A few paragraphs are reprinted below.
In the village of Cook’s Bay, on the remote side of the remote island of Erromango, in the remote South Pacific nation of Vanuatu, 1-month-old Joy Nowai was given shots for hepatitis and tuberculosis that were delivered by a flying drone on Monday.
It may not have been the first vial of vaccine ever delivered that way, but it was the first in Vanuatu, which is the only country in the world to make its childhood vaccine program officially drone-dependent.
“I am so happy the drone brought the stick medicine to Cook’s Bay as I don’t have to walk several hours to Port Narvin for her vaccines,” her mother, Julie Nowai told a Unicef representative. “It is only 15 minutes’ walk from my home.” ...
Miriam Nampil, the 55-year-old nurse who gave the shots, lives in Port Narvin, a coastal town whose clinic has a solar-powered refrigerator.
“This drone will change my life,” she said through a translator. “Normally, I must trek about two hours over the mountain each way, and the vaccine carriers are heavy.”...
Access the entire article, complete with photographs: An Island Nation’s Health Experiment: Vaccines Delivered by Drone.
Related Link
Back to top
CDC launches first video in its new animated video series for parents, “How Vaccines Work”
CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases recently launched the first video in a new, animated video series for parents titled “How Vaccines Work.”
In these short videos, viewers follow baby Jack and his parents as they get answers to common vaccine-related questions and learn more about the importance of vaccinating on schedule. The first video describes how vaccines fight germs and provide long-lasting protection against 14 serious diseases.
Watch and share How Vaccines Work: How Do Germs Make Your Baby Sick?
CDC will be launching two additional videos in February and March on the following topics: “Vaccines and Your Baby’s Immune System” and “What to Expect When Your Child is Vaccinated.”
CDC encourages healthcare professionals to share this new educational resource for parents.
Learn more at www.cdc.gov/vaccines/parents/childhood-vaccines.
Back to top
NFID shares 30-second video, "Don't Be a Dreaded Spreader," that encourages influenza vaccination
The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) has released a new 30-second video that can be shared with patients or as a public service announcement. Titled "Don't Be a Dreaded Spreader," the video focuses on the importance of 3 steps to fight influenza.
This public service announcement is being distributed to TV stations nationwide. NFID encourages healthcare professionals to share it with their networks and via social media channels.
View Don't Be a Dreaded Spreader.
Back to top
Washington State Department of Health releases second edition of its educational manual for health promoters and community health workers, The Importance of Adult Immunizations; available in English and Spanish
The Washington State Department of Health has released a second edition of The Importance of Adult Immunizations in English and Spanish. This manual provides information for health promoters and community health workers to educate in groups or individually about the importance of adult immunizations and the diseases they prevent. The manual is colorful and easy to understand, and designed to be printed and used as a flipbook with clients.
Four sample pages from the English version of this manual are included for your review.
 
 
This manual was a collaborative effort between the Washington State Department of Health, Washington Association for Community Health, health promoters/community health workers of Sea Mar Community and Family Health Centers of Okanogan County, and Health Center of Skagit County.
Access the English-language version: The Importance of Adult Immunizations (PDF format; 63 pages).
Access the Spanish-language version: La Importancia de la Vacunación en los Adultos (PDF format; 63 pages).
If you wish to adapt and change this material for your organization, please send an email to ImmuneMaterials@DOH.WA.GOV. If you have any questions or comments about the manual itself, please email Leigh.Wallis@doh.wa.gov.
Back to top
IAC's 142-page book, Vaccinating Adults: A Step-by-Step Guide, describes how to implement adult vaccination services in your healthcare setting and provides a review for staff who already vaccinate adults; IAC Guide available for free download
In late 2017, the Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) announced the publication of its new book, Vaccinating Adults: A Step-by-Step Guide (Guide).
This completely updated guide on adult immunization (originally published in 2004) provides easy-to-use, practical information covering important “how-to” activities to help providers enhance their existing adult immunization services or introduce them into any clinical setting, including:
- setting up for vaccination services,
- storing and handling vaccines,
- deciding which people should receive which vaccines,
- administering vaccines,
- documenting vaccinations (including legal issues), and
- understanding financial considerations and billing information.
In addition, the Guide is filled with hundreds of web addresses and references to help providers stay up to date on the latest immunization information, both now and in the future.
The entire Guide is available to download/print free of charge at www.immunize.org/guide. The downloaded version is suitable for double-sided printing. Options are available online to download the entire book or selected chapters. The development of the Guide was supported by the National Vaccine Program Office (NVPO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Expert staff from both agencies also provided early technical review of the content.
The Guide is a uniquely valuable resource to assist providers in increasing adult immunization rates. Be sure to get a copy today!
Related Links
Back to top
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
CDC to sponsor January 29 webinar for clinicians about the 2018–19 influenza season and recommendations
CDC will present a 1-hour webinar, 2018–2019 Influenza Season and Recommendations for Clinicians, beginning at 2:00 p.m. (ET) on January 29. Part of its Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) series, CDC has provided the following description of this session:
During this COCA Call, clinicians will learn about 2018–2019 influenza activity and hear an overview of CDC’s recommendations for healthcare providers regarding influenza vaccination and the use of influenza antiviral medications for the 2018–2019 influenza season, including a new antiviral medication approved by the FDA in October 2018.
Free continuing education credits (CME, CNE, CEU, CECH, and CPE) will be available.
Bookmark this page and then click on the link provided a few minutes before the webinar is scheduled to begin.
Related Link
Back to top
|
|
