Prevent Shoulder Injuries Caused by Missing the Deltoid Muscle When Injecting Vaccines!

November 2020

Technically Speaking
A Monthly Column by Deborah Wexler, MD
Deborah Wexler MD
IAC Executive Director Dr. Deborah Wexler writes Technically Speaking, a column featured in each issue of Vaccine Update for Healthcare Professionals, the monthly e-newsletter from the Vaccine Education Center (VEC) at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Technically Speaking columns cover practical topics in immunization delivery such as vaccine administration techniques, storage and handling, contraindications and precautions, and scheduling.
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TECHNICALLY SPEAKING
Prevent Shoulder Injuries Caused by Missing the Deltoid Muscle When Injecting Vaccines!
Published November 2020
It’s essential that you know how to choose the proper site on the arm when administering vaccines. A correctly placed injection not only will optimize the protection afforded by the vaccine, it also will help you avoid the risk of shoulder or arm injury resulting from an injection placed too high or too low in the arm.

Knowing exactly where to inject a vaccine is critical whether you’re “catching up” children, teens, and adults on their missed vaccinations during the COVID-19 pandemic, getting patients vaccinated against influenza, or administering COVID-19 vaccines in the near future.

The websites of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Immunization Action Coalition (IAC), and the California Department of Health Immunization Program are rich with practical tools and resources on how to identify the correct spot for administering vaccines. For example, the two CDC videos listed below have a combined total of more than 500,000 views, and the IAC materials listed are among the top downloads accessed on our website. Be sure to check out these and the other great materials shown below.

Watch these brief videos from CDC

Refer to these instructions from IAC

Use these job aids from the California Department of Public Health Vaccines For Children program (EZIZ)

Additional Resources

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