News and Media Resources:

Immunization Works March 2012 Issue

News and Summaries

Current Issues in Immunization NetConference: The next netconference is scheduled for March 29, 2012. The moderator will be Andrew Kroger. Iyabode Akinsanya-Beysolow will present information about the 2012 recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedule, and Raymond Strikas will address the 2012 recommended adult immunization schedules. Cathy Hogan will tell participants how they can use content syndication (a web sharing tool) to display the immunization schedules on their websites easily, and how the schedules will be automatically updated whenever CDC makes changes to them.

The event is full and registration is now closed. A replay will be available shortly after the event. Please visit the netconference web page for updates and archived netconferences.

ACIP Meeting: At the February 2012 meeting, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted to recommend tetanus-toxoid, reduced-diphtheria-toxoid, acellular pertussis (Tdap) vaccine for all previously unvaccinated persons 11 years of age or older. This vote extends the recommendation to adults 65 years of age or older.

ACIP also discussed current recommendations for influenza vaccine, new considerations for pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) for certain high-risk adults, hepatitis B immunity for health-care personnel, use of meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV4), mumps outbreaks in the U.S., and measles and rubella elimination documentation.

Please visit the ACIP meeting web page for presentation slides, meeting minutes, and additional information.

Influenza Information

Stay Informed! Influenza information is updated frequently. Please visit the Flu web site for the latest updates.

Update on Influenza Activity in the United States, October 2, 2011–February 11, 2012: The February 24, 2012, MMWR summarizes influenza activity in the United States since the beginning of the 2011–12 influenza season (October 2, 2011) and updates the previous report. From October through early January, influenza activity remained low throughout the United States. Activity increased slightly in early February 2012, but remains low. Influenza A (H1N1)pdm09 (pH1N1), influenza A (H3N2), and influenza B viruses all have been identified thus far this influenza season, and the majority of viruses in circulation are antigenically similar to strains included in the 2011–12 vaccine.

Influenza Vaccination Coverage Among Pregnant Women in 29 States and New York City During the 2009-2010 Season: Because influenza can be especially severe during pregnancy, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the ACIP recommend influenza vaccination for women who will be pregnant during the influenza season, regardless of trimester. During the 2009–10 influenza season, pregnant women were at increased risk for severe disease and mortality from influenza A (H1N1)pdm09 (pH1N1) pandemic virus infection. Anticipating this risk, both the inactivated trivalent seasonal and monovalent pH1N1 vaccinations were recommended for pregnant women. To estimate state-specific seasonal and pH1N1 influenza vaccination coverage among pregnant women, CDC analyzed data from the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). The February 24, 2012, MMWR provides estimates from 29 states and New York City for women who had live births during September 2009–May 2010. Median state coverage was 47.1% for seasonal and 40.4% for pH1N1 influenza vaccination. Overall, women who reported that a health-care provider offered them an influenza vaccination or told them to get one during their pregnancy were more likely to be vaccinated than those without an offer or recommendation. Substantial variation across areas was observed for prevalence of a provider offer or recommendation during pregnancy and for influenza vaccination. This summary highlights the need for state-specific strategies that optimize provider involvement to increase influenza vaccination of pregnant women.

Meetings, Conferences and Resources

New Meningococcal Disease and Meningitis Websites: New websites have been launched for meningococcal disease and meningitis. These user-friendly websites provide a better experience for those seeking information about either topic.

New Immunization Resources for Pediatricians From the AAP Childhood Immunization Support Program: Do parents frequently ask you about the connection between vaccines and autism or if an alternative schedule might be better? Understanding risk communication theory and having tools such as the CASE model encourage productive discussions with families about their vaccine safety concerns, and also help you manage your time in those discussions.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has a series of videos that introduce risk communication and the CASE model, role play two examples of the CASE model in action, and provide feedback on each of the scenarios. These videos can be viewed individually or as part of a larger group for discussion.

A new training guide is also available from the AAP. It is designed to assist pediatric office staff in all aspects of immunizing patients. Use this guide to educate and properly train physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, medical assistants, office managers, and other office staff. Covered topics include financing, supply, and ordering; storage and handling; communicating with parents about vaccines; vaccine administration; immunization information systems/registries; reminder/recall systems; quality improvement; the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS); and Vaccine Information Statements.

Surveillance of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases: NCIRD presented Surveillance of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases in December, 2011. This self-study program provides information on case investigation, outbreak control, disease reporting, and case notification for vaccine-preventable diseases. The course discusses the epidemiologically important data that should be collected during case investigations and presents methods for enhancing surveillance. The course provides current surveillance guidance for HPV, measles, rotavirus, mumps, varicella, hepatitis B, pneumococcal disease, Haemophilus influenzae, pertussis, and meningococcal disease. The course is now available in web-on-demand format and DVD format.  The DVD can be ordered on the NCIRD publication ordering form.

National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW): Mark your calendars: National Infant Immunization Week is April 21-28, 2012. This year, CDC will launch new childhood immunization resources for programs and partners, highlight Provider Resources for Vaccine Conversations with Parents, and recognize the recipients of the inaugural CDC Childhood Immunization Champion Award. NIIW is an annual observance that highlights the importance of protecting infants from vaccine-preventable diseases and celebrates the achievements of immunization programs and their partners in promoting healthy communities. Since 1994, NIIW has served as a call to action for parents, caregivers, and health-care providers to ensure that infants are fully immunized against 14 vaccine-preventable diseases. For more information, visit the NIIW web page.

This year, NIIW will be celebrated as part of the first World immunization Week, an initiative of the World Health Organization (WHO) where all six WHO regions including more than 180 Member States, territories and areas will simultaneously promote immunization, advance equity in the use of vaccines and universal access to vaccination services, and enable cooperation on cross-border immunization activities.

Save the Date: The 10th National Conference on Immunization and Health Coalitions (NCIHC) will be in New Orleans on May 23-25, 2012. Please visit the NCIHC website for additional information.

Updated Vaccine Storage and Handling Guide: NCIRD has released the updated Vaccine Storage and Handling Guide [PDF-718 KB, 77 pages] (formerly Vaccine Management). It is a comprehensive and authoritative document on storage and handling guidelines for specific vaccines (including combination vaccines). Available in this document are guidelines on vaccine-specific shipping requirements; arrival conditions; storage requirements; and information on shelf life, preparation, and special instructions.

CDC and Medscape Videos: This special series of commentaries is part of a collaboration between CDC and Medscape and is designed to deliver CDC's authoritative guidance directly to Medscape's physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other health-care professionals. In this series, experts from CDC offer video commentaries on the current topics important to practicing clinicians. NCIRD has contributed to a variety of commentaries.

Upcoming Nurses Seminar: Join us for the upcoming nurse seminars on three critical topics: talking with patients about vaccines; vaccination of health-care personnel; and reducing vaccine administration errors. First, view the pre-taped webcasts, and then join the live discussions which begin on April 4, 2012. For more information on this collaboration of CDC, the American Nurses Association, National Association of Immunization Nurses and Their Associates, and the Immunization Action Coalition, please visit the nurse seminar web page.

Immunization Publications: Please visit the NCIRD publications order form for the latest immunization publications. Copies of the 2011 Surveillance of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases DVD, the 2011 Parents Guide to Childhood Immunizations, and currentflu campaign materials areavailable for ordering. The 2012 immunization schedules and the 2012 Immunization Works DVD will be available soon.

CDC Job Openings: CDC is committed to recruiting and hiring qualified candidates for a wide range of immunization and other positions. Researchers, Medical Officers, Epidemiologists, and other specialists are often needed to fill positions within CDC. For a current listing, including international opportunities, please visit CDC’s employment web page.

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The Immunization Works database manager and editor can be contacted at nipimmzwrks@cdc.gov.

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