IAC recently completed the redesign of its Vaccine Concerns web section. The section features easy access to resources on specific topics that parents and patients have questions about: adjuvants, alternative medicine, autism, MMR, multiple injections, Poling case, religious concerns, and thimerosal.

It also includes information about and links to materials that broadly address these issues: the importance of vaccines, ways to talk with vaccine-hesitant patients and parents, and vaccine safety. In addition, the section offers a selection of resources IAC has culled from newspapers, journal articles, other periodicals, and websites.

To access the Vaccine Concerns homepage, go to
http://www.immunize.org/concerns

IAC recently reviewed and revised two of its hepatitis print resources. Information about the revisions follows.

"Should You Be Vaccinated Against Hepatitis B? A screening questionnaire for adults." This risk-assessment statement was added: "I have HIV infection."

To access "Should You Be Vaccinated Against Hepatitis B? A screening questionnaire for adults," go to:
http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p2191.pdf

"Hepatitis B and A Vaccines Are Imperative for Families Adopting from Abroad." Formerly titled "Hepatitis B Vaccine Is Imperative for Families Adopting from Abroad," this resource was updated with information about hepatitis A. IAC gratefully acknowledges Dr. Jane Aronson (http://www.orphandoctor.com) who made this resource available to us many years ago and contributed to its revision.

To access "Hepatitis B and A Vaccines Are Imperative for Families Adopting from Abroad," go to:
http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p4153.pdf

IAC's Print Materials web section has more than 175 FREE, ready-to-print English-language resources for healthcare professionals and the public--as well as many in translation. To access all of IAC's print resources, go to: http://www.immunize.org/printmaterials

The American Medical Association (AMA) recently made its members aware of a web-based tool that allows for processing in-office Medicare Part D vaccine claims electronically. The AMA information is reprinted below in its entirety.

IAC recently completed the redesign of its four state immunization information web sections:

(1) The State Websites section offers direct links to state health department websites. To access it, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/states

(2) The State/Territory Coordinators section has contact information for each state or territory's coordinators for the following: immunization, adult and/or perinatal hepatitis, and Vaccines for Children. To access it, go to: http://www.immunize.org/coordinators

(3) The States Mandates section has newly updated information on state immunization laws, presented in table and map format. To access it, go to: http://www.immunize.org/laws

(4) The Indian Health Service (IHS) immunization coordinators section has telephone and email contact information for IHS immunization program managers and coordinators. To access it, go to: http://www.immunize.org/coordinators/ihs.asp

Dated 1/30/08, the multi-vaccine VIS is now available in Burmese. IAC gratefully acknowledges the California Department of Public Health, Immunization Branch, for the translation.

To access the Burmese version of the multi-vaccine VIS, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/vis/bu_multi.pdf

To access the English version of the multi-vaccine VIS, go to:
http://www.immunize.org/vis/vis_multi1.pdf

NOTE: The multi-vaccine VIS comes in additional languages, including Spanish. To access them, go to: http://www.immunize.org/vis/vis_multi1.asp Click on the link to the pertinent language.

For information about the use of VISs, and for VISs in more than 35 languages, visit IAC's VIS web section at http://www.immunize.org/vis

NOTE: IAC's Print Materials web section has more than 175 FREE, ready-to-print English-language resources for healthcare professionals and the public--as well as many in translation. To access all of IAC's print resources, go to: http://www.immunize.org/printmaterials

Providers, your help is needed: A collaborative project is looking for medical assistants who provide immunization services to take a survey that will assess their immunization training needs. If medical assistants on your staff provide such services, you are encouraged to let them know about the survey. Here are the details:

The project is a collaboration among CDC, Emory University, Eastern New Mexico--Roswell Division of Health, and the Association for Prevention Teaching and Research. The goal is to assess the immunization training needs of medical assistants across the United States. Developed by Emory, the web-based survey has 25 questions and takes about 15 minutes to complete. It is anonymous; answers cannot be traced to a specific respondent. The deadline for completing the survey is August 8.

Medical assistants can access the survey by going to: http://www.masurvey.org Read the instructions, click the button marked "Continue," and proceed to the survey.

Providers can review the survey's content before publicizing the project by going to:
http://www.sph.emory.edu/media/SURVEY_REVIEW_ONLY.pdf