Flu vaccine is now available to order for your VFC and VFAAR eligible patients. Visit our flu page for instructions on how to place your first order and which products are available to order now.
Please note, all flu vaccine from the 2021-2022 season must be accounted for before you can order flu for the 2022-2023 season.
Account for any unused 2021-22 VFC/VFAAR flu vaccine still at your site using PhilaVax:
Process a return for the unopened vials online in the Vaccines Returns module. A job aid with step by step instructions can be found here.
Complete an adjustment for any open MDVs in the Inventory Module. A job aid with step by step instructions can be found here.
We will send out additional emails and update the flu page as more presentations of flu become available.
VFC & VFAAR providers can order flu for the 2022-23 season starting Monday, 8/29/22.
Make sure your site is ready!
Account for any unused 2021-22 VFC/VFAAR flu vaccine still at your site using PhilaVax:
Process a return for the unopened vials online in the Vaccines Returns module. A job aid with step by step instructions can be found here.
Complete an adjustment for any open MDVs in the Inventory Module. A job aid with step by step instructions can be found here.
Complete these steps today to avoid delays in processing your site’s 2022-23 flu season orders. If you have questions, contact DPHProviderHelp@phila.gov.
Order flu materials for your office. Get the conversation started about the importance of flu vaccination with these free posters.
Make sure that your EHR/EMR is set-up to report this year’s flu products. These are the vaccine available this year.
Visit our Flu Page on our website for more information on what vaccines are available and to gain access to flu resources and free print materials.
Menactra can no longer be ordered through VFC or VFAAR. The inventory of Menactra at the CDC depots has been depleted.
Sites that were using Menactra, need to transition to one of the other MCV4 products available, Menveo from GSK or MenQuadfi from Sanofi, if they have not already.
If your site ordered Menactra, and you have not already, please take a few minutes to complete this survey to let us know which MCV4 vaccine you plan to order going forward.
All VFC/VFAAR influenza vaccine supplied by the Philadelphia Immunization Program during the 2021-2022 flu season has expired. Please account for unused VFC/VFAAR flu vaccine at your site using PhilaVax:
Process a return for the unopened vials online in the Vaccines Returns module. A job aid with step by step instructions can be found here.
Please complete these steps by August 15, 2022, to avoid delays in processing your site’s 2022-23 flu season orders. If you have questions, contact DPHProviderHelp@phila.gov.
Don’t delay, return your expired vaccine now!
It is difficult to anticipate exactly when flu vaccine will be available. However, the health department is committed to getting flu vaccine to our providers as soon as it arrives. To prevent delays, please complete your flu return today.
All communication about the availability of flu vaccine will be made via email and posted on our website. Keep an eye out for upcoming messages! If you need to add more people to our mailing list, please contact us at vaccines@phila.gov.
Thank you for helping to protect Philadelphians this past year! We look forward to working together to keep people safe from the flu next season.
National Infant Immunization Week
April 24 – 30, 2022
National Infant Immunization Week (NIIW) is a yearly observance highlighting the importance of protecting children two years and younger from vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs). This year, in particular, it’s critical to ensure that families stay on track for children’s routine checkups and recommended vaccinations following disruptions from COVID-19.
Research has consistently shown that healthcare professionals are the most trusted and influential source of vaccine information for parents. All staff in healthcare practices, including non-clinical staff, play important roles during NIIW.
Adolescent Immunization Action Week gears up to get adolescents up to date on immunizations.
April 4 to April 8 is the first annual National Adolescent Immunization Action Week. Unity® Consortium launched this initiative to bring attention to the importance of adolescent immunization and to urge health care providers and parents to get adolescents up to date on recommended vaccines.
Research has consistently shown that healthcare professionals are the most trusted and influential source of vaccine information for parents.
Visit Unity’s AIAW campaign page for social media-ready materials and graphics you can use to communicate and draw attention to the importance of taking action now to improve adolescent immunization coverage.
Here are ideas to remind, recall, and schedule immunizations:
Together we can help mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on adolescent immunization rates and help to prevent future outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.
During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a decrease in HPV doses administered in the United States.
Here in Philadelphia, there was a 29% decrease in the total number of HPV doses administered in 2020 compared to 2019. This decrease affected every eligible age group:
9-13 year olds: HPV doses administered decreased by 17.5% from 2019 to 2020.
13-17 year olds: HPV doses administered decreased by 41.7% from 2019 to 2020.
18-26 year olds: HPV doses administered decreased by 53.7% from 2019 to 2020.
March 4 is International HPV Awareness Day!
To help bring HPV vaccination rates back to pre-pandemic levels, recommend HPV vaccine at every visit for 9-26 year olds who have not begun or completed their series.
Register for this CME webinar on March 2 from 1-2pm EST! Dr. Danielle Casher (Attending Physician, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia) will join cancer survivor Megan Lesar to discuss improving HPV vaccine rates in Pennsylvania.
On March 4, watch and share this video from the Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) to promote timely, complete HPV vaccination.
Steps to Recommend HPV Vaccine to Hesitant Parents
Announce:
Your child is __ years old.
Today, they are eligible to receive Tdap, HPV, and MCV vaccine.
We will make sure they get all these shots to keep them safe and healthy.
If parent hesitates:
Connect and Counsel:
What’s your main concern?
Counsel using a research-tested method (ex.”Over 30,000 Americans get cancer from HPV every year. Most could be prevented with the HPV vaccine.”)
If parent declines:
Try Again:
Almost 70% of parents who initially declined later agree to HPV vaccine or plan to vaccinate soon.
Vaccines can only be stored in certain acceptable storage units. Your vaccine storage unit is a key component in maintaining the vaccine cold chain at your practice.
Your vaccine storage units must:
Consistently maintain storage temperature.
Have enough space to properly store vaccines throughout the year including back to school and flu season.
Have separate external doors for refrigerator and freezer.
Have Do Not Unplug stickers at the outlet, on unit, and on the circuit breaker.
All units must be plugged directly into a dedicated wall outlet. Units cannot be plugged into:
GFI/GFCI outlets (specialized outlets with a built-in breaker, may have reset buttons)
Outlets that can be activated by a wall switch
Extension cords, power strips, surge protectors
Ensure that the unit, plug, and circuit breaker on the electric panel are clearly labeled to prevent accidental loss of power.
Selecting a unit to store your vaccines in is an important decision.
Purchasing a unit that is reliable and accurate up-front is a worthwhile investment, both in time and money, for your practice. The time needed to respond to out of range temperatures and the cost of reimbursement for wasted vaccines can be very burdensome for practices whose unit does not maintain in-range temperatures.
To ensure that the unit that you are considering is the best option for your clinic, email our program at TempCheck@phila.gov so that we can offer insight on the units that are being considered based on other providers experiences with a brand, the typical supply on hand at your practice, and other considerations based on the CDC recommendations for storage units.
The Immunization Program thanks you for your critical role of ensuring children in Philadelphia receive up-to-date immunizations prior to the school year!
To help you in your immunization efforts we have assembled some tips for avoiding one of the most common vaccine administration errors: scheduling errors!
What are Administration Errors?
Administration errors due to scheduling occur when vaccines are given too early – either before the appropriate minimum age or before the recommended interval for a particular vaccine.
Unfortunately, early doses are not valid. Minimum ages and dosing intervals have been studied for efficacy and safety. Administering vaccines out of this range may not generate an adequate immune response, leading to vulnerability to disease, side effects, or harm to the provider’s relationship with the patient/parent. It is in everyone’s best interest to avoid administration errors!
Exception: There is a 4-day grace period before the minimum interval or age, although this should not be used when scheduling visits. This does not apply to the 28-day interval between two live injectable vaccines (e.g. MMR, Varicella) or Flumist if not administered simultaneously, or intervals between the rabies vaccine.
Common Scheduling Errors
Here are some of the most common scheduling errors found when reviewing immunization histories and scheduling immunization appointments:
Administering the 1st dose of MMR, varicella, or hepatitis A vaccine before 12 months of age
Giving the 4th dose of DTap before age 12 months (or less than 6 months after the 3rd dose)
Not administering a dose of IPV after 4 years of age (at least 6 months after previous dose)
Finishing the hepatitis B series before 24 weeks of age
Administering any vaccine (except hepatitis B) before age 6 weeks
Giving the 2nd dose of MenACWY vaccine before age 16 years for a healthy adolescent
Inadequate spacing for the hepatitis A, hepatitis B, IPV and HPV series
Here is a list of tips to find past administration errors and avoid them going forward:
Keep an immunization schedule handy for clinical and office staff!
When scheduling well-child visits, ensure a child will have reached the appropriate age (e.g., will be at least 12 months on the date of their 1-year well-child visit).
Review the patient’s immunization record, by searching the PhilaVax IIS or by obtaining the patient’s vaccination records by contacting their previous healthcare provider.
Use the tools in PhilaVax to understand what is indicated for the patient.
A red exclamation mark means that a dose is not valid.
Click “Recommend” below a patient’s record to see when vaccines are recommended.
Did you know? You can update your PhilaVax settings so recommended vaccines display at the top of your screen when reviewing patient records. Follow the steps below and reference the screenshots to do it yourself!
Click your username in the upper right-hand corner (see screenshot 1)
Under “User Defaults,” click “Display Today’s Recommendations” (see screenshot 2)
Click “Update” to save the change (see screenshot 2)
screenshot 1
screenshot 2
What do I do if an Administration Error Happens?
Check for guidance from the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Recommended if a dose administration error occurs (required for a COVID-19 vaccine under Emergency Use Authorization)
Required if an adverse event occurs
Have questions about vaccine scheduling or the PhilaVax software? The Philadelphia Immunization Program is here to help! You can email us at vaccines@phila.gov for assistance.
National Infant Immunization Week
