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IAC Express 2008 |
| Issue number 767: December 1, 2008 |
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Contents
of this Issue
Select a title to jump to the article. |
- FDA
stresses the importance of healthcare organizations ensuring that
employees are vaccinated against influenza
-
Important: Be sure to give influenza vaccine throughout the influenza
season--through spring 2009
- MMWR
notifies readers that a CDC webcast, The Immunization Encounter: Critical
Issues, is set for December 18
- Today is
World AIDS Day
- December
16 is the date for IZTA's teleconference on issues and trends in
adolescent immunization
- ACIP
meeting scheduled for February 25-26, 2009, in Atlanta; February 2 is
deadline for non-U.S. citizens to register
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| Abbreviations |
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AAFP, American Academy of Family Physicians; AAP,
American Academy of Pediatrics; ACIP, Advisory Committee on Immunization
Practices; AMA, American Medical Association; CDC, Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention; FDA, Food and Drug Administration; IAC, Immunization
Action Coalition; MMWR, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report; NCIRD,
National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases; NIVS, National
Influenza Vaccine Summit; VIS, Vaccine Information Statement; VPD,
vaccine-preventable disease; WHO, World Health Organization. |
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Issue 767: December 1, 2008 |
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1. |
FDA stresses the importance of healthcare organizations ensuring that
employees are vaccinated against influenza
FDA recently posted a statement and a video on
its website that
urge healthcare organizations to make sure influenza vaccination
programs are available to healthcare personnel (HCP). A portion
of the statement is printed below. Links to English- and
Spanish-language versions of the complete statement are given at
the end of this IAC Express article, as are links to the video
and a related toolkit.
Despite the benefits of immunization, CDC estimates that only 40
percent of the nation's HCP are vaccinated each year. Studies
have shown that low vaccination rates among HCP contribute to
influenza outbreaks in hospitals and other healthcare settings,
needlessly putting patients at an increased risk of contracting
influenza and suffering from its potential major complications.
Annual immunization of caregivers protects employees, their
families and patients, and may reduce influenza-related deaths
among persons at high risk for complications from influenza.
HCP refers to all paid and unpaid persons working in healthcare
settings who have the potential for exposure to patients and/or
to infectious materials, including body substances, contaminated
medical supplies and equipment, contaminated environmental
surfaces, or contaminated air. . . .
One hospital evaluated the impact of vaccination on HCP and
hospitalized patients and saw an increase in immunization
coverage from 4 percent to 67 percent over 12 flu seasons.
During that timeframe, laboratory-confirmed influenza cases
among HCP decreased from 42 percent to 9 percent. In addition,
nosocomial (hospital-acquired) influenza cases among patients
decreased from 32 percent to 0 percent.
To access the statement in English, go to:
http://www.fda.gov/cber/flu/fluhealthcare.htm
To access the statement in Spanish, go to:
http://www.fda.gov/cber/flu/fluhealthcareesp.htm
To access the video, go to:
http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/psn/transcript.cfm?show=81#4
To access a related resource from the Department of Health and
Human Resources titled Health Care Personnel Initiative to
Improve Influenza Vaccination Toolkit, go to:
http://www.hhs.gov/ophs/programs/initiatives/vacctoolkit/index.html
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2. |
Important: Be sure to give influenza vaccine throughout the influenza
season--through spring 2009
Influenza vaccine for the 2008-09 influenza
season is widely
available, and the supply is robust. If you run out of vaccine
in your work setting, please place another order. Influenza
vaccination efforts should continue through the holiday season
and into the spring months of 2009.
Don't forget that December 8-14 is National Influenza
Vaccination Week. CDC's Seasonal Flu website offers a large
selection of information and resources related to this annual
event. To access them, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/nivw
For abundant information about influenza vaccination, visit the
following two websites often. They are continually updated with
the latest resources:
The National Influenza Vaccine Summit website at
http://www.preventinfluenza.org
CDC's Seasonal Flu web section at http://www.cdc.gov/flu
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3. |
MMWR notifies readers that a CDC webcast, The Immunization Encounter:
Critical Issues, is set for December 18
CDC published "Notice to Readers: The
Immunization Encounter:
Critical Issues" in the November 28 issue of MMWR. The notice is
reprinted below in its entirety.
CDC will present a webcast, The Immunization Encounter: Critical
Issues, on December 18, 2008. The broadcast will occur during 12
noon-2PM EST. The program will address issues related to the
routine encounter at an immunization clinic. Topics include
patient and parent communication and education, vaccine storage
and handling, preparing for medical emergencies, screening for
contraindications and precautions to vaccination, vaccine
administration, records and documentation, the Vaccine Adverse
Event Reporting System, and the Vaccine Injury Compensation
Program. Continuing education credits will be offered.
Additional information about the program is available at
http://www2a.cdc.gov/phtn/imm-encounter2008 No registration is
necessary to access the webcast via an Internet connection. The
link to the webcast is available at
http://www2a.cdc.gov/phtn/webcast/imm-encounter2008 The webcast
will be accessible through an Internet connection until January
20, 2009, and will become available as a self-study DVD and
Internet-based program in January 2009.
To access a web-text (HTML) version of the notice, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5747a4.htm
To access a ready-to-print (PDF) version of this issue of MMWR,
go to: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5747.pdf
To receive a FREE electronic subscription to MMWR (which
includes new ACIP recommendations), go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/mmwrsubscribe.html
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4. |
Today is World AIDS Day
CDC published a brief article, "World AIDS
Day--December 1,
2008," in the November 28 issue of MMWR. The article is
reprinted below in its entirety, excluding references.
December 1 is World AIDS Day. Begun in 1998, World AIDS Day
draws attention to the current status of the human
immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
(HIV/AIDS) pandemic. According to the Joint United Nations
Programme on HIV/AIDS, in 2007, approximately 33 million persons
worldwide were living with HIV, 2.7 million persons worldwide
were newly infected, and 2 million died from AIDS-related
causes.
In 2006, an estimated 1.1 million persons in the United States
were living with HIV, and 56,300 were newly infected. HIV
infection in the United States disproportionately affects
blacks, Hispanics, and men (of all races/ethnicities) who have
sex with men. During 2006, the rates of new infections in the
United States were estimated to be 83.8 per 100,000 population
among blacks, 29.4 per 100,000 among Hispanics, and 11.5 per
100,000 among whites.
Information about World AIDS Day is available at
http://www.cdc.gov/features/worldaidsday Information about
CDC's international HIV/AIDS program is available at
http://www.cdc.gov/globalaids Information about CDC's domestic
HIV/AIDS program is available at http://www.cdc.gov/hiv
To access a web-text (HTML) version of the complete article, go
to: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5747a1.htm
To access a ready-to-print (PDF) version of this issue of MMWR,
go to: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/PDF/wk/mm5747.pdf
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5. |
December 16 is the date for IZTA's teleconference on issues and trends in
adolescent immunization
The Immunization Coalitions Technical Assistance
Network (IZTA)
December 16 conference call will present a panel discussion on
current issues and trends in adolescent immunization. IZTA is a
program of the Center for Health Communication, Academy for
Educational Development.
CDC's Dr. Nada Jain will present recent data from the National
Immunization Survey about adolescent immunization rates.
Researcher and pediatrician Dr. Matthew Daley will present study
findings on the attitudes and practices of pediatricians and
family physicians regarding the human papillomavirus (HPV)
vaccine.
The call will be held at 1PM, ET. To register, send an email to
izta@aed.org Include this message: "Sign me up for the
adolescent immunization call."
To access earlier programs, go to:
http://www.izta.org/confcall.cfm
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6. |
ACIP meeting scheduled for February 25-26, 2009, in Atlanta; February 2 is
deadline for non-U.S. citizens to register
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) will
hold its next meeting on February 25-26, 2009, at CDC's Clifton
Road campus in Atlanta. The meeting is open to the general
public.
To attend the ACIP meeting at the Clifton Road campus, ACIP
attendees (participants and visitors) must register online. The
online registration deadline for the February 25-26 meeting for
non-U.S. citizens is February 2. The deadline for U.S. citizens
is February 9.
To access the online registration form, go to:
http://www2a.cdc.gov/nip/ACIP/FebruaryRegistration.asp
To access detailed information about the meeting, go to:
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/recs/acip/meetings.htm#register
There you will find links to the meeting agenda, driving
directions, and other useful material.
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