IAC Express 2010

Flu.gov recently posted Google's Flu Vaccine Finder on its home page to help the public find locations for influenza vaccination. The vaccine finder is based on the popular Google Maps feature. Patients looking for a provider with a supply of influenza vaccine can search for sites close to the zip code (or city and state) they enter into the Flu Vaccine Finder.

To try out the Flu Vaccine Finder, go to: http://www.flu.gov/individualfamily/vaccination/locator.html

Google worked with the American Lung Association, CDC, and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop this valuable resource.

If you would like to promote Google's Flu Vaccine Finder on your website, go to CDC's social media web section to get widgets (i.e., images to post on your website). You'll find them at the following link, under the subhead titled Available Widgets: http://www.flu.gov/news/socialmedia

CDC published "Human Rabies--Virginia, 2009" in the October 1 issue of MMWR. The first paragraph is reprinted below.

To access the full article in web-text (HTML) format, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5938a3.htm

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Immunization Branch, recently updated its award-winning training video, "Immunization Techniques: Best Practices with Infants, Children, and Adults." The 25-minute program can be used to train new employees and to refresh the skills of experienced staff. The video demonstrates the skills and techniques needed to administer vaccines to patients of all ages. It includes instruction on the following:

• Selecting, preparing, and administering injectable, oral, and nasal vaccines
• Documenting immunizations
• Making patients comfortable and educating them
• Facilitating staff and patient communication

Prices start at $17 each for 1-9 copies and are greatly reduced for large orders, dropping to $4.25 each for 1,000-1,500 copies.

To learn more about the DVD, and find out how to order it, go to: http://www.immunize.org/shop/toolkit_iztechdvd.asp

For quotes on larger quantities, call (651) 647-9009 or email admininfo@immunize.org

The Immunization Action Coalition is the only nationwide vendor of this new DVD.

Note for healthcare settings located in California: Contact your local health department immunization program for a free copy.

Medical offices and clinics often administer more than one vaccine to a patient during a single visit. If a patient or parent later calls to report a reaction, it can be puzzling for healthcare personnel to determine which vaccine caused the reaction.

Use of standardized injection site maps can help prevent this dilemma. With site maps, healthcare staff can jointly decide which anatomic site everyone in the office will use when administering a certain vaccine. For example, everyone can agree to administer DTaP in the upper right thigh, Hib in the lower right thigh or PCV7 in the upper left thigh, HepB in the lower left thigh.

CDC has posted several injection site maps for use when administering vaccines to patients ranging in age from babies to pre-teens. To access them, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/pinkbook/downloads/appendices/D/site-map.pdf

The Philadelphia Department of Public health has a site map for administering injections to teens. It is located at https://kids.phila.gov/Docs/Imm_teen_site_map.pdf

The California Department of Public Health has an injection site map for administering vaccines to adults. Access it at http://www.eziz.org/PDF/IMM-718adult.pdf

IAC encourages IAC Express readers to watch a 5-minute video from Medscape. In this video commentary, Andrew Kroger, MD, MPH, of CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, discusses significant changes in influenza recommendations for the 2010-11 influenza season. Registration is required to access this feature on Medscape. There is no charge to register.

The video will be available on the home page of IAC's website through October 10. To access it, go to: http://www.immunize.org and click on the image under the words Video of the Week.

Remember to bookmark IAC's home page to view a new video every Monday. To view an IAC Video of the Week from the past, go to the video archive at http://www.immunize.org/votw

The Books and Periodicals section on immunize.org provides up-to-date listings of key vaccine-related reference books and non-fiction reading material for healthcare professionals and their patients. For each item listed, you'll find publication details, a brief summary, and ordering information.

For the Reference Books section, which includes books such as "The Vaccine Handbook: A Practical Guide for Clinicians (third edition)" by Gary Marshall, MD, and "Vaccine--5th Edition" by Stanley A. Plotkin, MD, Walter A. Orenstein, MD, and Paul A. Offit, MD, go to: http://www.immunize.org/resources/books_refer.asp

For the Publications for Parents section, which includes the new book titled "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Vaccinations" by Michael J. Smith, MD, MSCE, and Laurie Bouck, go to: http://www.immunize.org/resources/books_booklet.asp

For the Nonfiction Books section, which includes books such as "Autism's False Prophets: Bad Science, Risky Medicine, and the Search for a Cure" by Paul A. Offit, MD, go to: http://www.immunize.org/resources/books_nonfict.asp

For Periodicals that cover immunization topics and vaccine research, go to: http://www.immunize.org/resources/books_period.asp

If you have additional books or periodicals to recommend for inclusion on immunize.org, please send your suggestion(s) to maryq@immunize.org

In addition to the listings of books and periodicals, IAC's online compendium of immunization resources includes descriptions and links for the following sections: CDC Materials, Continuing Education Opportunities, Email News Services, Government Agencies, Hotlines, Partner Organizations, International Organizations, Vaccine Manufacturers, and Package Inserts. To access these sections, go to http://www.immunize.org/resources

IAC recently revised two of its Q&A patient-education print pieces: "Chickenpox (Varicella): Questions and Answers" and "Pneumococcus: Questions and Answers." Both were updated to incorporate changes recently made in vaccine recommendations.

Varicella
To access the revised ready-to-print (PDF) print piece "Chickenpox (Varicella): Questions and Answers," go to: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p4202.pdf

Pneumococcus
To access the revised ready-to-print (PDF) print piece "Pneumococcus: Questions and Answers," go to: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p4213.pdf

For web-text (HTML) versions of these and other fully formatted documents, go to: http://www.vaccineinformation.org and click on the disease. You will be taken to Q&As about each disease and vaccine.

To access Q&As about other diseases and vaccines in ready-to-print (PDF) format, go to: http://www.immunize.org/printmaterials/questions.asp

On September 28, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Dr. Howard Koh, and CDC's Dr. Anne Schuchat were featured speakers on a "Know What to Do About the Flu" webcast. The webcast, the first of a series that will be broadcast this influenza season, included a review of the 2009-10 H1N1 pandemic, a look ahead on the upcoming influenza season, and tips on staying healthy.

The webcast has a run time of about 20 minutes. To access it, go to http://www.flu.gov/live

The American Lung Association is kicking off the national Faces of Influenza initiative to educate the public about CDC's new universal influenza vaccination recommendation. The initiative is spearheaded by a national spokesperson, Julie Bowen, actress and mother of three children. She joins other celebrities, health officials, and everyday people across the country as they share their personal experiences with influenza disease and encourage annual influenza vaccination.

Faces of Influenza is a multi-media national and regional awareness program designed to educate the public about the seriousness of influenza and encourage annual influenza immunization. To find out more and to view photographs and read stories about the faces featured on the Faces of Influenza website, go to: http://www.facesofinfluenza.org

The "CDC Features" web section now includes information for the public on pertussis, a timely topic considering the current outbreak in California.

To access "Pertussis (Whooping Cough)--What You Need to Know," go to: http://www.cdc.gov/Features/Pertussis

This 10-minute video reflects real-life situations as P.J., a pre-teen girl, learns about the shots she needs to prevent serious diseases. The video was developed by the Mid America Immunization Coalition, Kansas City, MO.

It is available free to physician offices and health departments. For $25, school districts can order a DVD toolkit that includes a curriculum containing a supplementary PowerPoint and handouts.

To view a trailer, get more information, and access an order form, go to: http://www.mchc.net

The 2010-11 VISs for trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine (TIV; injectable) and live attenuated intranasal influenza vaccine (LAIV; nasal spray) are now available in Karen (spoken in Burma and Thailand), Polish, and Thai. IAC gratefully acknowledges the Minnesota Department of Health for the Karen translations, the New York City Department of Public Health and Mental Hygiene for the Polish translations, and Asian Pacific Health Care Venture, Inc., for the Thai translations.

(Note: Minor corrections were recently made to the Thai translation of the VIS for inactivated influenza vaccine. If you downloaded this VIS in the past few weeks, download it again to ensure you have the most current and correct version.)

To access the new translations of the VIS for injectable influenza vaccine, as well as the injectable influenza vaccine VIS in English and other translations, go to: http://www.immunize.org/vis/vis_flu_inactive.asp

To access the new translation of the VIS for nasal-spray influenza vaccine, as well as the nasal-spray influenza vaccine VIS in English and other translations, go to: http://www.immunize.org/vis/vis_flu_live.asp

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

The October 1 issue of the WHO periodical "Weekly Epidemiological Record" includes the latest WHO position paper on pertussis vaccines. To access it, go to: http://www.who.int/wer/2010/wer8540.pdf

A collection of WHO position papers on vaccines is available in alphabetical order at http://www.who.int/immunization/documents/positionpapers

They are available in chronological order on the IAC website at http://www.immunize.org/who

CDC and six other national organizations are collaborating with the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID), Emory University School of Medicine, and the Emory Vaccine Center to sponsor a Clinical Vaccinology Course November 5-7 in Bethesda, MD.

Continuing education credits will be offered. Information regarding the preliminary program, registration, and hotel accommodations is available online at http://www.nfid.org/conferences/course1110

The deadline for submitting abstracts for workshops and poster presentations at the 2011 National Immunization Conference (NIC) is December 3. The conference will be held March 28-31 in Washington, DC.

To access the online Call for Abstracts, which includes detailed abstract guidelines and requirements and a link to the online abstract submission form, go to: http://cdc.confex.com/cdc/nic2011/cfp.cgi

For general information about NIC 2011, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/events/nic