August 11 2022

Network News – October 20, 2022

Coalition News, Top Stories, and Events

The National Network of Immunization Coalitions highlights the Utah Adult Immunization Coalition!

The Utah Adult Immunization Coalition recently partnered with its Public Information Office at the Utah Department of Health and Human Services, to help develop and provide feedback on a campaign called Stay Up to Date. The campaign website includes dropdown menus where you can select your age, or your child’s age, and receive a list of age-appropriate recommended vaccinations and health screenings.

There are two separate campaigns, one aimed towards children, called the Support campaign, and one aimed towards adults that the coalition was more heavily involved in, called the Alert campaign. The Public Information Office at the Utah Department of Health and Human Services created social media graphics, billboards, print media, TV and radio ads, and more, to fully implement the campaigns. Work is underway now to spread it as widely as possible in Utah.

Utah Adult Immunization Coalition meets virtually 8 times a year and is focused on educating its coalition members about updates to COVID-19 vaccine recommendations and other ACIP recommendations for vaccines, including the new universal hepatitis B vaccination recommendations. They also highlight other pertinent education and resources to help participants in their practice or their vaccine work. Utah Adult Immunization Coalition is currently discussing ways to expand the coalition to more fully exert its strength in actively advocating for adult vaccination in the state of Utah.

Vaccine Ambassadors launches an “Adult Immunization Mobilization” initiative to offer in-home immunizations to adults; North Carolina’s governor proclaimed October “Adult Immunization Promotion Month” based on their advocacy

The Vaccine Ambassadors launched an Adult Immunization Mobilization (AIM) initiative. To kick off this initiative, Vaccine Ambassadors partnered with two local Meals on Wheels chapters in North Carolina. The Meals on Wheels combined client base of 2,000 individuals and those residing in the home of the client will be offered in-home immunizations services for all adult vaccinations. A statement from Jackie Kaufman, executive director, Vaccine Ambassadors, appears below.

We most often associate vaccines with children, but there are many vaccines that are important as we grow older. Over the past 2-years many people have missed routine preventive services including recommended vaccines. We know that those with chronic health conditions are at greater risk of complications from vaccine-preventable diseases. It is our hope that by increasing access to vaccines through in-home services, more adults will be protected. This partnership seems like a perfect way to launch our new Adult Immunization Mobilization (AIM) initiative.

As a result of a proposal submitted by Vaccine Ambassadors, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper has proclaimed October as Adult Immunization Promotion Month. Vaccine Ambassadors will be partnering with public health departments and community-based organizations in North Carolina to promote access and uptake of all adult immunizations throughout the month.

Montgomery County Immunization Coalition launches a social media toolkit to bring attention to the importance of COVID-19 vaccination during Hispanic Heritage Month and shares flu messaging

National Hispanic Heritage Month is observed every year from September 15 to October 15. This year, Montgomery County Immunization Coalition (MCIC) is focusing on bringing attention to the importance of COVID-19 vaccination in the Hispanic community. MCIC is working with partner organizations to create bilingual social media images and messages that you can use on your social media platforms to encourage the Hispanic community to get all of the recommended COVID-19 vaccines.

The social media toolkit can be found in MCIC’s AmVAXador Library under “Social Media Tool Kit.” Please feel free to use and share.

Additionally, MCIC has created new flyers and social media images with sample text to make it easy to encourage flu and COVID-19 vaccination in your community. MCIC worked with partner organizations to make resources available in five languages. The resources can be found in all five languages in MCIC’s AmVAXador Library under “Featured Resources.” Please feel free to use and share.

**Montgomery County Immunization Coalition shares its Say Boo to the Flu and COVID too! social media toolkit on the importance of getting your flu and COVID-19 vaccines before Halloween**

The Montgomery County Immunization Coalition (MCIC) has created Say Boo to the Flu and COVID too! social media toolkit with images and sample text to make it easy for you to get the word out to your community about the importance of getting your influenza and COVID-19 vaccines before Halloween. This campaign’s message is that it is important to get your annual influenza vaccine and keep up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines since both influenza and COVID-19 spread easily during the winter and can be serious. You can get an influenza vaccine at the same time you get a COVID-19 vaccine. CDC recommends that the optimal time for everyone to receive their influenza vaccine is by the end of October, but vaccination should continue as long as vaccine is available and the influenza season is not over.

Check out the toolkit with social media images and sample text and feel free to use and share.

Immunize Kansas Coalition releases two interactive online education modules, “Family Perspectives on Vaccines” and “Faith Perspectives on Vaccines”

The Immunize Kansas Coalition (IKC) recently released two interactive online education modules designed for families and faith communities to learn more about the importance of vaccination.

Family Perspectives on Vaccines is a great resource for families wanting to learn more about how immunization is the best way to protect against harmful diseases like pertussis, pneumococcus, polio, and others. In the module, families are taught key facts about vaccination, vaccines recommended for children/teens, and where to find reliable information needed to make health decisions for their families.

Faith Perspectives on Vaccines is designed for individuals to answer questions about how we can understand the importance of vaccines in the context of faith. The module includes topics on how vaccines protect us and our neighbors, taking care of the physical body given by God, the history of faith and vaccination, vaccine resources for different faiths, and more.

Oklahoma Alliance for Healthy Families releases blog encouraging flu vaccination and hosts “Stand up for Science” immunization conference on November 4 in Oklahoma City, OK

The Oklahoma Alliance for Healthy Families has released a new blog post titled Plan Ahead for Fall Fun by Staying Well, Getting Immunized against the Flu. The post encourages adding the flu vaccine to the top of your seasonal to-do list to make it easier to attend activities this season by reducing the risk of flu to yourself and others.

Visit Oklahoma Alliance for Healthy Families’ Our Blog main page for more.

Oklahoma Alliance for Healthy Families is also hosting a conference titled Stand Up for Science from 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. (CT) on November 4 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The conference is an educational event targeting immunization leaders and healthcare providers from around the state and region who have an interest in addressing and improving immunization issues. Hear from panelists as they discuss informed decision-making about immunizations and current events.

Indiana Immunization Coalition hosts in-person “HPV Stakeholder Meeting” on November 1 in Indianapolis, IN, and “Collaborating to Raise HPV Vaccine Rates” webinar on November 10; CNE available

The Indiana Immunization Coalition will host an in-person meeting titled HPV Stakeholder Meeting from 8:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. (ET) on November 1 in Indianapolis, Indiana. During the meeting, there will be a discussion on how advocates from all disciplines can work together to raise HPV vaccine rates in Indiana.

CNE will be offered.

The Indiana Immunization Coalition will also offer a webinar titled Collaborating to Raise HPV Vaccine Rates from 3:00–4:00 p.m. (ET) on November 10. During the webinar, Gabrielle Darville-Sanders, PhD, MPH, strategic director of the National HPV Vaccination Roundtable, will present suggestions for community partnerships and initiatives that may improve HPV vaccine rates.

CNE will be offered.

Resources

Vaccinate Your Family launches its “Not ‘Just’ the Flu” campaign to raise awareness about the seriousness of the flu and the importance of vaccination

Vaccinate Your Family has launched its Not “Just” the Flu Campaign to raise awareness about the seriousness of flu and the importance of flu vaccination. The launch of the campaign was timed to coincide with the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases’ Flu and Pneumococcal News Conference.

This campaign features key messages, social media graphics, and pre-drafted posts with a special focus on pregnant people, parents of young kids, people living with chronic conditions, and people age 65 and older. “Not ‘Just’ the Flu” materials include:

Social media sharing toolkit for campaign materials available in both English and Spanish
Campaign web page
Flu season kick-off blog post

The campaign will run for as long as flu season lasts.

If you’re interested in co-branding, please reach out to dana@vaccinateyourfamily.org.

National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants, and Migrants shares translated resources for the flu season, a new toolkit on healthy spaces, and a webinar on creating healthy spaces to improve public health and COVID-19 outcomes

The National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants, and Migrants (NRC-RIM) is offering new translated resources, a toolkit, and a webinar for refugee, immigrant, and migrant (RIM) communities.

The NRC-RIM now offers translated resources about flu season that explain symptoms, the importance of testing, and why it is important to be vaccinated against both COVID-19 and the flu. Download the fact sheet, read the conversation guide, and share the social media assets.

NRC-RIM’s Healthy Spaces Toolkit offers guidelines and materials to help the RIM communities stay up to date on COVID-19 boosters and get caught up on routine vaccinations. The toolkit is the latest collaboration between NRC-RIM and IDEO.org. Translations are now available in French, Pashto, Spanish, and Vietnamese.

Finally, NRC-RIM and IDEO.org will offer a webinar titled Creating Healthy Spaces with RIM Community Leaders to Improve Public Health and COVID-19 Outcomes at 12:00 p.m. (ET) on October 27. This webinar, which is a collaboration with the Champaign-Urbana Public Health Department and the Immigrant Cooperative, will help you learn more about the Healthy Spaces Toolkit and about co-designing spaces in your community that serve refugee, immigrant, and migrant communities. The webinar will share tools that you can use off-the-shelf or customize to meet your community’s needs.

Voices for Vaccines releases podcast with Paul Offit to discuss studies on aluminum

Voices for Vaccines (VFV) posted a new entry in its Vax Talk podcast series: Dr. Offit’s Take on Aluminum featuring Paul Offit, MD, discussing aluminum as vaccine adjuvants. A description from the VFV web page appears below.

A new study seems to connect childhood vaccines to asthma. Or does it?

We invited our friend and hero, Dr. Paul Offit, to the show to discuss this study and the other studies from the past investigating vaccines and aluminum adjuvants. Don’t miss his take!

Voices for Vaccines is a national organization of parents and others dedicated to raising the level of the voices of vaccination supporters. VFV invites everyone who values vaccines to become a member, use VFV tools in their own community, and get involved with VFV.

Related Links

Voices for Vaccines Resources main page
Voices for Vaccines podcast page

Association of Immunization Managers shares three new items of interest, including a training recording, podcast episode, and pandemic success story

The Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) hosted its Annual Influenza Update and Communications Training on September 20. The webinar included what to expect during this influenza season. L.J. Tan of Immunize.org presented an update on the upcoming influenza season that included the National Adult and Influenza Immunization Summit (NAIIS) projections of vaccine availability and timing. Gray Media walked through strategies and key messages for highlighting flu vaccinations to the media and the public.

View the webinar recording, slides, and resources.

Additionally, AIM posted a new episode on its podcast, AIMing to Inform on September 14. The episode features Heather Burris, immunization division chief at the District of Columbia Department of Health (DC Health), explaining her learnings and challenges from her freshman year of being an immunization manager. With a clear focus on equity, partnerships, and leading with kindness, Heather discusses how she plans to use the technology and processes gained during COVID for all immunizations.

Listen to the podcast on the AIMing to Inform web page, and like, subscribe, and review on Apple or Spotify.

Finally, the Journal of Public Health Management and Practice published A Pandemic Success Story: Distribution and Administration of COVID-19 Vaccines in the November/December 2022 issue. In the article, AIM Executive Director, Claire Hannan, and colleagues from the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) talk about the highly effective COVID-19 vaccination efforts through planning and administration, partnerships, surveillance, and public health policy and regulatory actions. While it is important to reflect on lessons learned and challenges to the vaccination campaign, it is equally important to assess what is working and continue to build upon current capacity and prior successes into the future.

**VYF’s Shot of Prevention releases three new blog posts**

Vaccinate Your Family (VYF) hosts a blog, Shot of Prevention, where people come to discuss news and views on vaccines. Check out the most recent Shot of Prevention blog posts:

Subscribe to Shot of Prevention to get the latest blog posts delivered to your inbox.

Coalitions in the News

These recent articles feature coalition activities and other stories of interest to coalitions

Washington Post: Why Polio, Once Nearly Eradicated, Is Rebounding (10/7/22)
CNN: Updated COVID-19 Boosters Are ‘Most Important Thing’ Americans Can Do for Their Health Today, Official Says (10/7/22)
KTNV: Are You Protected? Immunize Nevada Encourages Flu, COVID-19 Vaccines Ahead of Flu Season (10/5/22)
Drug Topics: Expanding the Reach of Public Health to Assist Influenza Immunization Rates (10/4/22)
AAFP.org: New Tools Aid Talks on Vaccine Safety, Routine Immunizations (10/4/22)
Contemporary Pediatrics: AAP Discusses Importance of Immunization Information Systems (9/27/22)

Announcements

Announcements from the National Network of Immunization Coalitions

The National Network of Immunization Coalitions reminds you of the important ways every coalition can plug into the power of our network:

Bookmark National Network of Immunization Coalitions’ Calendar of Events on its website, immunizationcoalitions.org, to learn about upcoming national, regional, state, and local conferences; workshops; and virtual educational opportunities
Subscribe to IZ Express, the free weekly e-newsletter produced by Immunize.org, for immunization-related news, new and updated recommendations, educational materials, and educational opportunities
Urge your coalition members to sign up for IZ Coalitions Network News, the monthly e-newsletter for the National Network of Immunization Coalitions that features news of interest to immunization coalitions and nonprofit organizations. To subscribe, send a request to info@immunizationcoalitions.org asking to be included.
Be sure that your coalition is listed and information is up to date on the National Network of Immunization Coalitions website. To add your coalition or make updates, please email info@immunizationcoalitions.org.