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The following recordings have recently been approved for accessibility and are posted on our website.
Center of Excellence in Newcomer Health: 2023 webinars
- Strategies for Responding to the Psychosocial Needs of Afghan Communities
- What Resettlement Partners Should Know About Public Health Reportable Conditions
- Community-Based Approaches to Vaccine Confidence
The "Guidelines on Maternal Lead Screening for Immigrants and Refugees" recording will be posted as soon as it's available.
In partnership with ECHO Colorado, the Minnesota Center of Excellence in Newcomer Health has been hosting a monthly training on newcomer health since Oct. 25, 2022; the trainings will continue until Dec. 3, 2024.
Register for the 2024 series on the ECHO Colorado Website! Please note that ECHO has a new website, so you may need to clear your internet history/cache before registering.
We heard your feedback and have changed the time of the series to make it easier to attend for folks on the west coast!
Sign up for the ongoing monthly ECHO sessions held virtually:
ECHO Colorado: Newcomer Health
Last Tuesday of each month
11 a.m. ET | 10 a.m. CT | 9 a.m. MT | 8 a.m. PT
Refer to Connect Troubleshooting Tips (PDF) if you have issues registering, joining, etc.
Promotional flyer: ECHO Colorado: Newcomer Health (PDF)
Access resources and previous sessions: Newcomer Health ECHO Resource Page
Applesauce containing high levels of lead
CDC issued a Health Alert Network (HAN) update on Nov. 13, 2023, regarding recent reports of high blood lead levels in children consuming recalled cinnamon-containing applesauce products that have high levels of lead. State partners tested multiple lots of the reported products, and test results indicated the products contained extremely high levels of lead. WanaBana, Schnucks, and Weis have initiated voluntary recalls of certain lots of the following products:
- WanaBana brand apple cinnamon fruit purée pouches
- Schnucks brand cinnamon applesauce pouches
- Weis brand cinnamon applesauce pouches
Additional information including clinical and public health guidance can be found at CDC: Lead and Chromium Poisoning Outbreak Linked to Cinnamon Applesauce Pouches.
Polio vaccine
CDC has received a number of inquiries regarding the recently published Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), Use of Inactivated Polio Vaccine Among U.S. Adults: Updated Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices — United States, 2023. This publication summarizes evidence considered by the advisory committee on immunization practices (ACIP) to recommend that all U.S. adults 18 years and older who are known or suspected to be unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated against polio complete a primary polio vaccination series with inactivated polio vaccine (IPV), and adults who have received a primary series of trivalent oral polio vaccine (tOPV) or IPV in any combination and who are at increased risk for exposure to poliovirus may receive another dose of IPV.
To that end, they would like to clarify that CDC’s Guidance for Evaluating and Updating Immunizations during the Domestic Medical Examination for Newly Arrived Refugees has not changed. Per the guidance, vaccinations, including polio vaccinations, should be given in accordance with ACIP recommendations.
Additionally, CDC’s Overseas Refugee Health Guidance remains unchanged. Per that guidance, polio vaccines are routinely given to U.S.-bound refugees and Visa 93 (V93) applicants 6 weeks of age to under 18 years old; while those 18 years and older are vaccinated only in countries where the WHO has determined the risk of international spread of poliovirus to be a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). Additional information can be found in CDC's Addendum to Technical Instructions for Vaccinations: Polio.
Tuberculosis
The 2024 Tuberculosis Technical Instructions for Panel Physicians (TB TIs) have been posted on the CDC website and are effective as of Jan. 24, 2024, with major changes to testing to be implemented no later than Oct. 1, 2024.
Major revisions in the 2024 TB TIs that go into effect on Oct. 1, 2024, include:
- Panel physicians must perform an interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA) on all applicants 2 years of age and older in countries with a World Health Organization (WHO)-estimated tuberculosis incidence rate of ≥20 cases per 100,000 population, to begin no later than Oct. 1, 2024. Children in these countries have been required to receive IGRA testing since 2018. Note that applicants 15 years and older in these countries will continue to receive a chest x-ray regardless of IGRA results. Panel physicians will now be allowed to use WHO-approved IGRA tests in addition to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved tests to improve availability and potentially lower costs.
- Panel physicians must perform a molecular test in addition to sputum smears and culture. The molecular test must be a nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) and must be performed on the first respiratory specimen from all applicants requiring sputum collection for initial diagnosis. Panel physicians must begin using a molecular test no later than Oct. 1, 2024.
- Please refer to TB TIs for other minor revisions.
Updates to the Tuberculosis Technical Instructions for Civil Surgeons for examination of applicants within the United States will be posted in the coming weeks, and additional information will be provided at that time. If you have any questions regarding the 2024 TB TIs for panel physicians, you may contact the CDC Quality Assessment Program (QAP) at cdcqap@cdc.gov.
The 2024 North American Refugee Health Conference (NARHC) will be held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Aug. 5-7, 2024!
Their call for abstracts is open. Read the abstract guidelines and make sure to submit by April 1, 2024.
Register now at Society of Refugee Healthcare Providers: NARHC Conference!
The Healthcare for Humans podcast is a show dedicated to educating you on how to care for culturally diverse communities so we can be better healers. Examples of past episode topics include Advancing Healthcare Equity, Mental Health in Immigrant Communities, and Filipinos – Cuisine & Culture.
Listen to the podcast: Healthcare for Humans
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