| Childhood
Immunizations | Vaccines for Children Program | Adolescent
Immunizations | Adult Immunizations | Assessment
| Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention | Information
and Education | Service Delivery
Childhood
Immunizations
The Arizona Immunization Program Office (AIPO) works with the public and
private sector to reach the Year 2010 goal of immunizing 90% of
Arizona's children by age two with the recommended vaccines.
Vaccines for Children Program
(VFC)
The Vaccines for
Children Program (VFC) provides free vaccine to enrolled public and
private providers for administration of vaccines to the following children:
- Medicaid enrolled
(AHCCCS);
- Uninsured;
- Native American/Alaskan Native;
and
- Some
underinsured.
AIPO manages the VFC program in Arizona through vaccine ordering, distribution, management and accountability. VFC
providers receive site visits for technical assistance in vaccine
storage and handling, compliance with recommended eligibility screening,
immunization schedules and compliance with VFC requirements.
The VFC program has forms available for providers enrolled in the
program. These forms include:
Adolescent
Immunizations
Promotion of
adolescent immunizations has increasingly become a focus of AIPO and
strategies have been initiated promoting adolescent immunization. The number of school-based
immunization programs providing on-site immunization clinics has
steadily increased, and more clinics are offering Hepatitis B, Td
boosters and
second MMR.
Adult
Immunizations
Promotion of adult immunizations is an ongoing focus of AIPO. The
program provides technical assistance to county health departments and
community health centers for adult immunization programs. AIPO
also works in collaboration with other community groups through
participation in the Arizona Partnership for Adult Immunizations (APAI).
APAI is a coalition focused on raising awareness among heathcare
providers and the public about the need to increase adult immunization
coverage. The coalition meets monthly to plan influenza and other education campaigns.
Since 1997, all county
health departments and community/migrant health centers have been encouraged
to enroll as Medicare providers. This is done in order to provide
influenza and pneumococcal vaccine to Medicare recipients. An increasing number of county health departments have
established adult immunization clinics and offer hepatitis B, Td
boosters and MMR.
Assessment
AIPO conducts annual
immunization coverage level assessments on children 19-35 months of age
in both the public and private sectors and assessment of children
enrolled in school and day care. Assessments are conducted bi-annually in
county health departments, community health centers and at selected WIC
sites in Maricopa and Pima counties. Assessments are also conducted
annually on private commercial health plans participating in TAPI. All assessments conducted by AIPO follow CDC
guidelines and promote use of the Assessment, Feedback, Incentive,
and Exchange (AFIX) model and the Clinic Assessment Software Application (CASA).
Hepatitis
B Prevention
The Perinatal
Hepatitis B Prevention Program focuses primarily on 1) testing all
pregnant women for hepatitis B virus and 2) ensuring the appropriate
prophylactic treatment of infants born to hepatitis B positive
women or to women whose antigen status is unknown. Additionally, testing
and hepatitis B immunizations are offered to all household and sexual contacts of
the positive woman.
Comprehensive adolescent "catch up"
programs have also been initiated in schools, juvenile
correctional facilities and other high risk areas for hepatitis B virus infection.
Information
and Education
Information and
Education (I&E) activities are incorporated into all components of
the Arizona Immunization Program Office. The I&E program coordinates
with agencies around the state to offer satellite video conference
broadcasts from the CDC. AIPO hosts these
broadcasts in Maricopa County. Each year AIPO hosts the Arizona
Immunization Conference with key speakers from the CDC and state
organizations. I&E also works with county health departments
and community health centers to promote National Infant Immunization
Week during April and publishes the quarterly newsletter Immunications.
AIPO distributes all
federally required immunization information to providers, including the
most current Vaccine Information Statements (VISs) which are provided to
individuals before receipt of vaccine(s). In
addition, AIPO provides the Official State Immunization Record Card
(designed to resemble a U.S. passport) free of charge to all public and
private providers in Arizona. The immunization card is included in new
mother
immunization packets distributed to Arizona birthing hospitals, so that
the child's first hepatitis B immunization can be recorded in the
booklet.
Service
Delivery
Service delivery
enhancement includes identifying "pockets of need" where
children are under-immunized and underserved. All public and private providers are
strongly encouraged to follow the "Standards of Pediatric and
adolescent Immunization Practices" and the "Standards of Adult
Immunization Practice" which describe methods to increase service delivery by
identifying and eliminating barriers to immunization. These include
providing evening and weekend clinic hours, conducting outreach clinics,
using reminder/recall practices, administering all vaccines necessary at
each visit, following true contraindications and educating parents
about immunizations.
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