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The Maine Immunization Program is proud to announce that Ashley Goodwin, Practice Manager with Clinical Community Services in Lewiston, Maine has been selected as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Childhood Immunization Champion for Maine.
The U.S. CDC and the Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) hold this annual awards program to honor immunization champions across the 50 U.S. states, 8 U.S. Territories and Freely Associated States, and the District of Columbia during National Infant Immunization Week (April 27-May 4, 2019).
Ms. Goodwin was nominated and selected from a pool of health professionals, community advocates, and other immunization leaders for making a significant contribution to public health in Maine through her work in childhood immunization.
“Anything for the greater good” is Ms. Goodwin’s motto. She created and piloted a new workflow to ensure that children can be vaccinated according to the U.S. CDC’s recommended immunization schedule at every opportunity. Ms. Goodwin also regularly coaches staff on making the most effective vaccine recommendations, and collaborates with the outpatient quality department to obtain monthly immunization data. Ms. Goodwin rewrote the book on how Community Clinical Services approaches childhood vaccinations and embedded it into the practice’s daily duties through positive coaching, workflow support, and attention to detail.
Young children rely on the champions in their lives to keep them safe and healthy. Champions may be doctors and nurses who share scientifically accurate, up-to-date information about vaccines with parents. They may be advocates who go the extra mile to ensure that all children in their communities have access to vaccines. They may be public health professionals who work behind the scenes tracking immunization data, coordinating vaccine logistics, or developing public awareness campaigns. They may even be parents who share their personal stories about vaccination with their communities.
When families, healthcare professionals, and public health officials work together, all children can be protected from serious and deadly vaccine-preventable Maine. We are pleased and honored to congratulate her on this well-deserved award.
To read Ashley Goodwin’s profile on the U.S. CDC’s website, and to learn more about U.S. CDC’s Childhood Immunization Champion Award program, please visit the U.S. CDC website.
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School, Camp and Sports Physicals:
It's never too early to make sure kids are up to date on their vaccinations
Although there are still a couple of months before school is out, we encourage Providers to help families get ready for summer vacations, camps, and other fun activities by making sure kids are up-to-date on all of their vaccinations.
Any visit to the doctor— from an annual health checkup to a physical for sports, camp, or college can be a good time for preteens and teens to get their recommended vaccinations.We encourage you to make every opportunity to get patients in now to beat the back-to-school rush at the end of the summer vacation before school starts. With the start of summer vacation, many families will be traveling to other states and even out of the country where there may be current outbreaks of disease.
Be sure to utilize the Reminder/Recall feature in ImmPact!
May is Hepatitis Awareness Month
The month of May is designated as Hepatitis Awareness Month in the United States, and May 19th is Hepatitis Testing Day. During May, the U.S. CDC and its public health partners work to shed light on this hidden epidemic by raising awareness of viral hepatitis and encouraging priority populations to get tested.
Promote hepatitis awareness by using #HepAware19
Visit the U.S. CDC website for more information and resources. |
Education Corner
Reminder/Recall Report
There have been multiple outbreaks of measles in the U.S. So far this year, there have been 704** cases in 22 states. This is the greatest number of cases reported in the U.S. since 1994 and since measles was declared eliminated in 2000.
Although we have not had an outbreak in Maine yet, we anticipate there will be continued opportunities for measles to spread as we continue through the spring travel season and into early summer.
We strongly encourage you to utilize your Reminder/Recall Reporting feature available in the ImmPact registry to ensure that your patients are up-to-date on their MMR series. For instructions on how to run this type of report and other reports, please refer to the ImmPact User Manual or contact the Maine Immunization Program at 207-287-3746.
**Cases as of April 26, 2019. Case count is preliminary and subject to change. Data are updated every Monday.
Be prepared with the resources below to help protect your patients from measles
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Immunization Action Coalition
Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
American Academy of Pediatrics
Are you sure you know your stuff?
Take the quiz below to make sure you are maintaining appropriate temperatures for your refrigerated vaccines:
1. What is the recommended temperature range for refrigerated vaccine?
a.) 35 degrees F - 46 degrees F
b.) 36 degrees F - 46 degrees F
c.) 36 degrees F - 45 degrees F
d.) I have no idea - as long as the vaccine is in the fridge and not below 32, I don't worry about it.
The correct answer is b. Refrigerated vaccine should be kept between 36 and 46 degrees F. Ideally, we recommend that you aim for 40 degrees F, which allows for minor fluctuations in temperature, without going outside of the recommended range.
In addition, it is important to note that freezer temperatures for frozen vaccine should be kept between -58 degrees F and +5 degrees F. |
