Issue 1070: August 6, 2013

TOP STORIES

IAC HANDOUTS

IAC WEB SECTIONS

FEATURED RESOURCES

JOURNAL ARTICLES AND NEWSLETTERS

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS



TOP STORIES

IAC's Give birth to the end of Hep B initiative helps birthing hospitals adopt and strengthen hepatitis B birth dose policies

With the July launch of IAC's initiative urging the nation’s birthing institutions to Give birth to the end of Hep B, IAC asked all of its immunization partners to get involved in promoting the hepatitis B vaccine birth dose.

Our partners' help is needed because, unfortunately, nearly one in three U.S. newborns leaves the hospital unvaccinated against hepatitis B. As a result, approximately 800 U.S. newborns become chronically infected each year because of perinatal exposure. These newborns would be afforded a “safety net” if a birth dose were universally administered before hospital discharge.

To help birthing hospitals increase the rate of birth dose vaccination, IAC has created a new website section that provides complete information and resources about the birth dose at www.immunize.org/protect-newborns.

Two new resources from IAC

In addition to increasing awareness about the need for the hepatitis B birth dose, the initiative offers tools to help birthing institutions adopt or strengthen their birth dose policies.

Guidebook. The centerpiece of this supportive effort is IAC’s comprehensive new guidebook, Hepatitis B: What Hospitals Need to Do to Protect Newborns. Endorsed by the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the guide contains a wide range of resources to help birthing institutions establish, implement, and optimize their hepatitis B birth dose policies.

Visit www.immunize.org/protect-newborns/guide to view the guidebook’s table of contents and download some or all of its sections.

Birth Dose Honor Roll. Complementing the guidebook is our new Hepatitis B Birth Dose Honor Roll, which recognizes birthing institutions that have attained a birth dose coverage rate of 90% or greater and have met specific additional criteria. These criteria help define the important elements of a birth dose policy that are needed to ensure newborns do not fall through the cracks when medical errors occur.

In achieving a 99% coverage rate, Albany Medical Center, Albany, New York, became the first birth dose champion to be inducted into the honor roll at the initiative's July 16 launch event in Albany, New York.

The launch event also included a nationally broadcast webinar with speakers from CDC, IAC, New York State Department of Health, and Albany Medical Center. The 45-minute webinar is available online.

For information about the Hepatitis B Birth Dose Honor Roll and how you can apply, visit www.immunize.org/honor-roll/birthdose.

Please Get On Board

August is National Immunization Awareness Month. What better time to join the cause, and help Give birth to the end of Hep B?

Here’s what you can do:
  • Download the guidebook Hepatitis B: What Hospitals Need to Do to Protect Newborns; it is available at www.immunize.org/protect-newborns/guide;
     
  • Share the guide with hospitals and birthing centers to help them improve birth dose coverage rates;
     
  • Distribute the handout “Give Birth to the End of Hep B” (color version, black/white version), to educate others about the importance of the hepatitis B birth dose;
     
  • Apply for enrollment into the Birth Dose Honor Roll at www.immunize.org/honor-roll/birthdose.
This initiative is a continuing campaign to assist the nation’s more than 3,000 birthing institutions as they adopt and strengthen their hepatitis B birth dose policies.

With your partnership, we will Give birth to the end of Hep B!

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It's National Immunization Awareness Month! Here are materials you can use to develop your own promotions

August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM). The National Public Health Information Coalition (NPHIC), the organizer of NIAM 2013, has developed materials that will help you communicate immunization messages to a variety of audiences during NIAM and into the future.

The centerpiece is the communication toolkit. It is intended to help public information officers, immunization program managers, and coalition leaders work together to communicate the importance of immunizations during NIAM and build momentum among provider groups, the media, and social networks. Users are invited to use the toolkit to design their own promotions, mix and match, copy or adapt the contents to fit the particular news and issues in their own organization or locality.

The downloadable communication toolkit is structured to feature a different population in each week of August. The component parts are offered in PDF format (hyperlinked below) and Word format (accessible on the communication toolkit home page)

In addition to the print materials above, NIAM 2013 communication materials also include logos and banners for use with a variety of audiences

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New York State Department of Health adopts new influenza prevention regulations for personnel in healthcare facilities, residential facilities, and agencies

The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) has adopted new requirements to prevent transmission of influenza by personnel in licensed healthcare facilities and agencies in the state. The regulation calls for healthcare facilities to require that personnel who are not vaccinated against influenza wear a surgical or procedure mask during the influenza season while working in areas where patients may be present. These entities also must document the number and percentage of personnel vaccinated against influenza for the current season and provide these data to the NYSDOH upon request.

Related Links
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FDA expands age indication for Menveo (Novartis) to include infants and toddlers age 2 through 23 months

On August 1, FDA approved Menveo (Novartis) for use in infants as young as age 2 months. Menveo is a quadrivalent conjugate vaccine that can help protect against invasive disease caused by four groups of the bacterium Neisseria meningitidis (A, C, Y and W-135).

Related Links
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IAC Spotlight! Five more healthcare organizations join IAC's Honor Roll for Patient Safety

IAC urges qualifying healthcare organizations to apply for its Honor Roll for Patient Safety. The honor roll recognizes hospitals, medical practices, professional organizations, and government entities that have taken a stand for patient safety by implementing mandatory influenza vaccination policies for healthcare personnel. More than 250 organizations are now enrolled.

Since May 28, when IAC Express last reported on the Honor Roll for Patient Safety, the following five organizations have been enrolled.

Newly added government entities and healthcare organizations
Government entity: State of New York (see related article in this issue of IAC Express)

Healthcare organizations and health agencies: Henry County Health Center, Mt. Pleasant, IA; Wilson Memorial Hospital, Sidney, OH; Wellspan Health, York, PA, and Community Pediatrics, Beaver Dam, WI.

Related Links

  • Listing of all honorees by state
  • Position statements from professional societies and leading healthcare organizations in support of mandatory influenza vaccination
  • Honor roll web section, which includes access to the application form (see the gold trophy cup in right column, and click on the words "Apply for the Honor Roll")
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CDC publishes report on vaccination coverage among kindergartners during 2012–13 school year

CDC published Vaccination Coverage Among Children in Kindergarten—United States, 2012–13 School Year in the August 1 issue of MMWR (pages 607–612). A press summary of the article is reprinted below.

Most kindergarteners continue to be up-to-date on their vaccines, as shown by statewide levels of vaccination coverage being at or very near the Healthy People 2020 target of 95 percent for most states. While exemption levels were low nationally, outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases can still occur where there are clusters of unvaccinated children in schools and local communities.  This report serves as a good reminder to busy families to make sure their children are vaccinated according to CDC’s recommended schedule. Although state levels of vaccination coverage are at or very near target levels, vaccine preventable diseases remain a threat in schools and communities. The best way to prevent these potentially serious diseases is to get yourself and your family vaccinated according to CDC’s recommended schedule.

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IAC HANDOUTS

IAC updates its staff education materials "Current Dates of Vaccine Information Statements" and "It's Federal Law! You must give your patients current Vaccine Information Statements (VISs)"

IAC recently revised Current Dates of Vaccine Information Statements (VISs) and It's Federal Law! You must give your patients current Vaccine Information Statements (VISs). Both now include the issue date of the most recent version of the VISs for inactivated influenza vaccine (IIV) and live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV). CDC posted these VISs to its website on July 26. For information on the VIS for IIV and LAIV, see the IAC Express article titled New: CDC issues VISs for the 2013–14 influenza vaccines—stay tuned for translations, which was published on July 30.

In addition to changing the issue dates of the influenza VISs, IAC also updated the links to CDC's web sections on the handout titled "Current Dates of Vaccine Information Statements (VISs)."

Related Links
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IAC updates Q&As for the public on varicella disease and vaccines

IAC recently revised the patient-and-parent handout titled Chickenpox (Varicella): Questions and Answers: Information about the disease and vaccines.

Related Links
  • A table that lists all IAC's vaccine Q&A handouts is available.
  • 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.
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IAC WEB SECTIONS

IAC updates online Ask the Experts Q&A web section on varicella

Based on content review by vaccine experts at CDC, IAC recently updated the varicella (chickenpox) section of Ask the Experts.

To access Ask the Experts sections for other vaccines and diseases, see the Ask the Experts index page.

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FEATURED RESOURCES

CDC redesigns its Vaccine Information Statements web section

CDC recently redesigned and reorganized its Vaccine Information Statements web section onto one page. The new section is organized to let users see the full array of VISs at a single glance. Posted VISs include those for routinely and non-routinely administered vaccines; issue dates are given in red. Subheads titled "What's New with VISs," "What are VISs?" and "How to Use VISs" give users access to comprehensive information about VISs

In addition to having a new look, the web section offers healthcare professionals and their patients access to mobile-friendly versions of VISs.

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Order IAC's popular full-size laminated versions of the 2013 U.S. immunization schedules today!

IAC's laminated versions of the 2013 U.S. child/teen and adult immunization schedules are covered with a tough, washable coating that lets them stand up to a year's worth of use in every area of your healthcare setting where immunizations are given. Each has six pages (i.e., three double-sided pages) and is folded to measure 8.5" by 11".

IAC's Laminated Child and Teen Immunization SchedulesIAC's Laminated Adult Immunization Schedules
Laminated schedules are printed in color for easy reading, come complete with essential tables and footnotes, and include contraindications and precautions—a feature that will help you make an on-the-spot determination about the safety of vaccinating patients of any age.

PRICING
1–4 copies: $7.50 each
5–19 copies: $5.50 each
20–99 copies: $4.50 each
100–499 copies: $4.00 each
500–999 copies: $3.50 each

For quotes on customizing or placing orders for 1,000 copies or more, call (651) 647-9009 or email admininfo@immunize.org

You can access specific information on both schedules, view images of both, order online, or download an order form at the Shop IAC: Laminated Schedules web page.

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JOURNAL ARTICLES AND NEWSLETTERS

July issue of CDC's Immunization Works newsletter now available

CDC recently released the July issue of its monthly newsletter Immunization Works and posted it on the website of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD). The newsletter offers the immunization community information about current topics. The information is in the public domain and can be reproduced and circulated widely.

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EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Archive of July 25 Current Issues in Immunization NetConference available online

Broadcast on July 25, the latest Current Issues in Immunization NetConference has been archived. The conference focused on the influenza vaccine recommendations for 2013–14.

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CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS

North Carolina Cervical Cancer Coalition Summit planned for September 13 in Raleigh

Scheduled to take place in Raleigh, the North Carolina Cervical Cancer Coalition Summit is designed for participants, particularly those from North Carolina, who have an interest in cervical cancer prevention and treatment. Organized by Cervical Cancer-Free NC (CCFNC), the summit will feature the release of a report that used statewide data systems and the most up-to-date research evidence to identify cervical cancer burden, screening, and vaccination in North Carolina. CCFNC's goal is to use the report to catalyze stakeholder action on recommendations outlined in the report.

Related Links
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About IZ Express

IZ Express is supported in part by Grant No. 1NH23IP922654 from CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. Its contents are solely the responsibility of Immunize.org and do not necessarily represent the official views of CDC.

IZ Express Disclaimer
ISSN 2771-8085

Editorial Information

  • Editor-in-Chief
    Kelly L. Moore, MD, MPH
  • Managing Editor
    John D. Grabenstein, RPh, PhD
  • Associate Editor
    Sharon G. Humiston, MD, MPH
  • Writer/Publication Coordinator
    Taryn Chapman, MS
    Courtnay Londo, MA
  • Style and Copy Editor
    Marian Deegan, JD
  • Web Edition Managers
    Arkady Shakhnovich
    Jermaine Royes
  • Contributing Writer
    Laurel H. Wood, MPA
  • Technical Reviewer
    Kayla Ohlde

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