Canadian Immunization Guide 2006
Canadian Immunization Guide
Seventh Edition - 2006
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Part 1
General Guidelines
Immunization Records
Vaccines administered to an individual
should be recorded in three locations:
- the personal immunization record held by
the person or his or her parent/guardian;
- the record maintained
by the health care provider who gave the immunization; and
- the local or provincial registry.
Each method of recording should include
the following:
- trade name of the product
- disease(s)
against which it protects
- date given (day, month and year)
- dose
- site and route of administration
- manufacturer
- lot number
- name and title of person administering the
vaccine
Pre-printed, peel-off labels and bar
coding of products will facilitate such recording. Manufacturers
are encouraged to produce these labels and to bar code products.
Immunization registries should have mechanisms that will allow
bar coded information about the products to be read into the
database.
Personal immunization
records: Each person who is
immunized should be given a permanent personal immunization
record. Individuals should be instructed to keep the record in a
safe place and bring it to immunization visits. Parents should
maintain these records on behalf of their children and pass them
on to their children at the appropriate time, such as when they
are leaving home. Immunization records may be required for
children to attend school or child-care centres. Adults may be
required to produce these records in order to work in certain
professions, such as health care, teaching or occupations
requiring foreign travel. Relevant information, such as rubella
and hepatitis B serology or tuberculin skin test results, can
also be recorded in the personal immunization record.
Health care provider
records: Health care providers
must also maintain a record of all vaccinations provided. In
addition to information about vaccinations given, the health care
provider's record should include all relevant serologic
data (e.g., rubella serologic results, hepatitis B surface
antibody titres) and should document adverse events following
immunization as well as contraindications, exemptions or reasons
for deferring vaccination. It is recommended that a summary of
immunizations, serologic results and any significant adverse
vaccine reactions be stored in an easily retrievable
manner that permits regular checking and
updating of the individual's immunization status (i.e.,
immunization information should not be archived in a medical
record). Electronic medical records used by health care providers
should have the capacity to collect and easily retrieve all
required vaccination information. Vaccine providers should
forward the immunization information to other providers and/or to
agencies, such as public health, as appropriate or required by
legislation.
Immunization registries: There are several advantages to maintaining
immunization records in a registry. On an individual level,
immunization registries prevent immunizations already given by
another health care provider from being duplicated.
A comprehensive immunization registry
system will serve the following functions:
- Facilitate the timely, accurate
recording of all relevant immunization information regardless of
where and by whom the vaccines were administered
- Identify
children and adults who are overdue for immunizations and
generate reminders and recalls for these individuals
- Allow
health care providers to review immunization status at each
encounter in a confidential, secure manner and produce
immunization records for their patients
- Provide data for public
health professionals to assess immunization rates, and plan and
evaluate targeted interventions for populations with less than
optimal immunization rates
Where immunization registries exist,
immunization providers should be aware of legislative or other
requirements to report immunization information to these
registries. Incomplete information can significantly decrease
the benefits derived from an immunization registry. Strategies
should be employed to maximize participation by health care
providers.
Refer to the National Guidelines for Immunization
Practices for
additional information about the use and maintenance of
immunization records.
Selected references
Canadian Immunization Registry
Network (CIRN). URL:
<http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/im/cirn-rcri/index.html>.
Feikema SM, Klevens RM, Washington ML et
al. Extraimmunization among US
children. Journal of the
American Medical Association 2000;283(10):1311-17.
Health Canada. Functional standards and minimum (core) data sets
for a National Immunization Registry Network and Vaccine
Associated Adverse Event Surveillance System. Canada Communicable Disease Report
2002;28(S6):1-38.
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