Immunize​.org published an updated version of its popular Ask the Experts: COVID-19 web page on August 3. This extensive list of clinical questions and answers addresses COVID-19 recommendations and clinical considerations, including vaccine recommendations for children age 6 months through 4 years, and information about Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine. 



Immunize​.org’s Ask the Experts main page leads you to 30 distinct web pages on a variety of topics with more than 1,200 common or challenging questions and answers about vaccines and their administration. Immunize​.org’s team of experts includes Kelly L. Moore, MD, MPH (team lead), Carolyn B. Bridges, MD, FACP, and Iyabode Beysolow, MD, MPH.

Look for a Special Edition of IZ Express – Ask the Experts on Thursday, August 18, featuring questions and answers on Hib vaccination and COVID-19 vaccines. 

Related Links

• Immunize​.org: Ask the Experts: COVID-19 web page
• Immunize​.org: Ask the Experts main page to access more than 1,200 questions and answers

CDC updated their Monkeypox: Vaccine Considerations web page with interim clinical considerations for use of Jynneos and ACAM2000 vaccines during the 2022 U.S. monkeypox outbreak on August 15. This important guidance on use of monkeypox vaccines includes the new intradermal (ID) administration option for Jynneos. ID administration requires only 0.1 mL of vaccine, expanding the number of people who can be vaccinated (the standard subcutaneous dose is 0.5 mL); however, improper administration, delivering the vaccine too deeply beneath the intradermal layer, results in an ineffective dose. Training in ID injection technique is essential to properly deliver an effective immunizing dose.

Immunize​.org’s Vaccines: Monkeypox main page provides links to new CDC and FDA resources related to both standard (subcutaneous) and alternative (ID) dosing regimens. Healthcare professionals administering or counseling patients on monkeypox vaccination should review these changes.

Related Links

• CDC: Monkeypox: Vaccine Considerations
• CDC: Video: How to Administer a Jynneos Vaccine Intradermally
• CDC: Monkeypox main page
• FDA: Fact Sheet for Healthcare Providers Administering Vaccine: Emergency Use Authorization of Jynneos (Smallpox and Monkeypox Vaccine, Live, Non-replicating) for Prevention of Monkeypox Disease in Individuals Determined to Be at High Risk for Monkeypox Infection
• FDA: Fact Sheet for Recipients and Caregivers about Jynneos (Smallpox and Monkeypox Vaccine, Live, Non-replicating) to Prevent Monkeypox Disease in Individuals Determined to Be at High Risk for Monkeypox Infection
• Immunize​.org: Vaccines: Monkeypox main page

Immunize​.org updated its new Vaccines: Monkeypox main page that provides links to key resource pages from CDC, FDA, Immunize​.org, and other professional organizations. The page has been revised to incorporate new resources from CDC and FDA related to the standard (subcutaneous) and alternative (intradermal) dosing regimens for the live, non-replicating vaccine against monkeypox, Jynneos (Bavarian Nordic).  

Bookmark Immunize​.org’s new Vaccines: Monkeypox main page for key links to important resources. The page will be updated as new guidelines and resources become available.

Related Links

• CDC: Monkeypox main page
• CDC: Monkeypox: Vaccine Considerations web page
• CDC: Video: How to Administer a Jynneos Vaccine Intradermally
• CDC: Jynneos Smallpox and Monkeypox Vaccine: Standing Orders for Administering Vaccine (PDF)
• CDC: Jynneos Smallpox and Monkeypox Vaccine: Storage and Handling Summary (PDF)
• Immunize​.org: Vaccines: Monkeypox main page

The American College Health Association (ACHA) released two toolkits for colleges and universities for the 2022–2023 academic year. The CoVAC Student Ambassador Toolkit provides a framework for peer education and the Vaxforward toolkit focuses on building vaccine confidence. 

Student ambassadors can be a powerful force for behavior change on campus. The CoVAC Student Ambassador Toolkit can help you create a student ambassador program to stop the spread of COVID-19 on your campus. Updated and expanded resources include:

• Student Ambassador Program Planning Guide
• Event Planning Guide  
• Communication Plan
• Workshop Lesson Plan
• Easy-to-Share Graphics

Related Links

• ACHA: Campus COVID-19 Vaccination and Mitigation Initiative (CoVAC) main page
• ACHA: CoVAC Student Ambassador Toolkit
• ACHA: Vaxforward toolkit

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Immunize​.org offers many useful materials on adolescent vaccination for professionals and parents. 

Resources for Adolescent Vaccination main page offers all the adolescent educational materials from Immunize​.org and partner organizations.

Adolescent Vaccination main page contains the handouts that pertain to adolescent vaccinations.

CDC Schedules main page provides print-ready PDFs of the recommended vaccination schedules for children and adolescents, as well as for adults. 

Screening Checklists about Vaccine Contraindications and Precautions main page links you to forms that patients can fill out to expedite assessment of vaccination needs and contraindications.

Give2MenACWY website offers resources to help providers increase teen vaccination and MenACWY booster dose rates. 

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August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM). This annual observance highlights efforts to protect people of all ages against vaccine-preventable diseases through on-time vaccination. This year, NIAM focuses our attention on the urgent need to catch up on routine visits and vaccinations that were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

CDC’s NIAM web page includes key messages, sample social media content, and educational resources in two toolkits:

• One for reaching healthcare professionals
• Another for reaching parents and patients

CDC encourages its partners to share these messages and resources throughout August using the hashtag #ivax2protect. Stay tuned for more resources to be released throughout the coming weeks.

Related Links

• CDC: NIAM web page
• CDC: Toolkit for Reaching Healthcare Professionals main page
• CDC: Toolkit for Reaching Parents and Patients main page

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These recent articles convey the potential risks of vaccine-preventable diseases and the importance of vaccination.

• Washington Post: Polio Virus Is Found in New York City Wastewater (8/12/22)
• CNN: Around 1 Million Children in London Offered Polio Boosters after Virus Is Detected in Sewage (8/10/22)
• FDA: Monkeypox Update: FDA Authorizes Emergency Use of Jynneos Vaccine to Increase Vaccine Supply (8/9/22)
• ABC: CDC Sends Team to New York to Investigate Polio Case (8/8/22)

Vaccine Track is a new website that displays state and national trend data on use of vaccines recommended for U.S. adults. Vaccine Track is produced through a partnership between GSK and Iqvia, a data analytics company.

As an example of its usefulness, the Vaccine Track main page shows how adult vaccination rates fell during the COVID-19 pandemic, using claims data from Medicare, Medicaid, commercial, and cash services. Vaccine Track shows vaccination trends to help inform and achieve clinical and public health efforts to reach Healthy People 2030 immunization objectives. The data will be refreshed quarterly with only a 3-month lag time. CDC adult vaccination coverage reports are typically updated once every 12 months with data at least 1 year old at the time of publication. Vaccine Track is the first tool to make comprehensive vaccination claims data across different payer types available publicly.



Users can explore state and national vaccination trends for adults age 19 years and older in the United States:

• Across multiple vaccines
• Across years
• By demographics (e.g., age, race/ethnicity, gender, payer type)

Related Links

• GSK: Vaccine Track web page
• GSK media release: GSK and IQVIA Launch Vaccine Track, a Data Trend Platform to Help Improve Adult Vaccination in Communities Nationwide (8/8/22)

In the United States, COVID-19 vaccination rates among young people are lower than in other age groups. To get the word out about why youth COVID-19 vaccination is so important, Boost Oregon created a TikTok challenge. Invite your social media friends to produce a song, dance, skit, animation, or another creative message. Then record it as a video that runs 60 seconds or less and caption it with #vaxinaction. 
 
Upload your video(s) to the web page available at boostoregon.org/fyi by 12 p.m. (PT) on August 26. The winner will be announced by September 2 and will receive a Nintendo Switch gaming system.

Download Immunize​.org’s free 142-page book on adult vaccination to help build your program and train your team: Vaccinating Adults: A Step-by-Step Guide (Guide).

 

This thorough "how to" guide on adult vaccination provides easy-to-use, practical information covering all essential activities. It helps vaccine providers enhance their existing adult vaccination services or introduce them into any clinical setting.

The Guide is available to download/print either by chapter or in its entirety free at www.immunize.org/guide. The National Vaccine Program Office and CDC both supported the development of the Guide and provided early technical review.

The Guide is a valuable resource to assist providers in increasing adult vaccination rates. Be sure to get a copy today!

Please note: this guide was produced in 2017, before the COVID-19 era, and reflects the recommendations of that time.

Related Links

• Vaccinating Adults: A Step-by-Step Guide main page, permitting download of entire Guide (142 pages, PDF)
• View the table of contents and individual chapters (PDF):
  • Table of Contents
  • Step 1: Getting Started
  • Step 2: Setting Up for Vaccination Services
  • Step 3: Vaccine Storage and Handling
  • Step 4: Deciding Whom to Vaccinate
  • Step 5: Administering Vaccines
  • Step 6: Documentation and Related Issues
  • Step 7A: Financial Considerations
  • Step 7B: How to Bill for Adult Immunizations
• Immunize​.org’s educational materials (handouts) on adult immunization

In the June 1 issue, JAMA Internal Medicine published Association of COVID-19 Vaccination during Pregnancy with Incidence of SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Infants. The Conclusions and Relevance section appears below.

The results of this Norwegian population-based cohort study suggested a lower risk of a positive test for SARS-CoV-2 during the first 4 months of life among infants born to mothers who were vaccinated during pregnancy. Maternal COVID-19 vaccination may provide passive protection to young infants, for whom COVID-19 vaccines are currently not available.

In the August 3 issue, JAMA Network Open published COVID-19 Vaccination Intentions, Concerns, and Facilitators among U.S. Parents of Children Ages 6 Months through 4 Years. The Conclusions and Relevance section appears below.

These results suggest that only a minority of parents of children in this age group are eager to vaccinate their children within the first few months of eligibility, with widespread concerns about COVID-19 vaccination for this age group. Thus, considerable efforts to increase parental COVID-19 vaccine confidence for children age 6 months through 4 years may be needed to maximize COVID-19 vaccination for this age group in the United States.

Table 1 shows that among respondent parents, the most commonly selected COVID-19 vaccination concern for their children age 6 months through 4 years was possible long-term side effects. The most commonly selected facilitators for COVID-19 vaccination were more information showing COVID-19 vaccines are safe in children and more information showing COVID-19 vaccines are effective in children.

The Vaccine Education Center (VEC) at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) will present a 1-hour webinar on COVID-19 boosters, yearly vaccines, and what's next with variant-specific vaccines, beginning at 12:00 p.m. (ET) on September 14. Part of its Current Issues in Vaccines series, the webinar will feature Paul Offit, MD, director of the VEC.

Free continuing-education credits (CME, CNE, and CPE) will be available for both the live and archived events.

Register for the webinar.

Related Link

• VEC's Vaccine Webinar Archive web page

CDC continues its 19-part pre-recorded webinar series to provide a chapter-by-chapter overview of the 14th edition of Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases (also known as "The Pink Book"). 

Webinar #8, on rotavirus and hepatitis A vaccines, was released on August 16. Additional webinars will be released weekly, concluding on November 1, 2022.
 
No registration is required to view the sessions. Information and program details are available on CDC's Pink Book Webinars series web page.

CME, CNE, CPE, and CEU credits are available for each event. Questions about the material can be submitted to [email protected].