Special Report from USA Today: Unsafe Injection Practices
USA Today's cover story, "Dirty Medical Needles Infect Thousands Across the USA," highlights some of the recent healthcare-associated infections resulting from unsafe injection practices. The webpage also features a video with statements from Evelyn McKnight, president of HONOReform, a national advocacy organization dedicated to protecting patients through safeguarding the medical injection process; and CDC's associate director for infection control, Michael Bell.

ACOG Offers Toolkits For Influenza and Tdap Immunization
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recently added two immunization toolkits, one on influenza and another on Tdap, to its Immunization for Women website.

Emerging Infections, Microbial Threats to Health, and the Microbiome
The Institute of Medicine released audio and PPT presentations from the December 11-12, 2012, Anniversary Symposium on "Emerging Infections, Microbial Threats to Health, and the Microbiome." The audiofiles and PPTs are embedded in the meeting agenda.

CDC Case Studies from the Epidemic Intelligence Service  

The CDC has assembled a group of case studies from the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) that are available for applied epidemiology training. These case studies can be accessed here.

 

School Nurse Resources for Disaster Preparedness

The National Association of School Nurses (NASN) has launched a disaster preparedness webpage with resources to assist schools and communities respond to traumatic events in school.     

 

Are You that Guy? Campaign Helps Kids Say "No!" to Spreading the Flu 

The Are You That Guy? influenza awareness campaign by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) focuses on educating parents and children about flu prevention, symptoms, and treatment. The campaign calls attention to "That Guy" - a person who despite experiencing flu symptoms, continues to go about his/her daily activities and as a consequence, may inadvertently spread the virus to others.

To help parents educate their children about the flu, NFID developed a coloring book that teaches children about flu symptoms and good habits that may help prevent flu from spreading.

Deadline to Submit Abstracts for 2013 CSTE Annual Conference

The deadline for the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists' (CSTE's) Call for Abstracts is approaching for breakout, roundtable, and poster presentations at the 2013 Annual Conference in Pasadena, California. Abstracts must be received no later than Monday, January 7, 2013 by 11:59 PM EST through the online CSTE abstract submission site at http://9nl.com/2013Abstracts/. The website includes instructions and guidelines for submission. 

 

New Adult Vaccine Finder by HealthMap
The  HealthMap Vaccine Finder includes more than 50,000 locations that provide the influenza vaccine.  The site will include 10 additional adult vaccines this month. You can register your location by clicking the "about" button on this site. 

 

2013 Public Health Preparedness Summit: Infectious Disease Sessions

Join NACCHO at the 2013 Public Health Preparedness Summit March 12-15 in Atlanta! The goal of the summit is to strengthen and enhance the capabilities of public health professionals and other participants to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters and other public health emergencies.

 

A selection of sessions will examine infectious disease outbreaks and mass dispensing, including:

For more details on the summit, including the full agenda and registration information, visit http://www.phprep.org/. 

 

Public Health Uniform National Data System

NACCHO recently launched the Public Health Uniform National Data System (PHUND$), a web-based public health financial data collection and analysis portal hosted on the NACCHO website. PHUND$ was created to 1) Provide LHDs with timely, reliable and uniform data to support assessment and decision-making; 2) help NACCHO describe and monitor financial health and sustainability of public health systems; 3) provide LHDs the ability to proactively assess their financial and operational performance; 4) promote uniform public health financial management practices; and 5) increase public health agency transparency. For additional information, please contact Giselle Plata or 202-783-1376.  

   

National Provider Call: Meaningful Use
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) will host a National Provider Call on the Electronic Health Record Incentive Program on January 16, 2013 (2:00-3:30 PM EDT). The agenda and registration information are available soon on the CMS National Provider Calls registration website.

NACCHO MAPP Training: February 26-28, 2013 

Join NACCHO in Washington, D.C. at the Winter Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) Training to learn how to take action steps toward a healthier community. MAPP is a community-owned strategic planning process informed by comprehensive assessments for improving the public's health. MAPP training participants will learn the nuts and bolts of the MAPP process, hear stories from the field from MAPP users, and gain concrete skills for engaging community organizations, partners, and community members. Contact mapp@naccho.org and someone from the MAPP team will get back to you shortly.

2013 National Immunization Conference to be held June 3-6, 2013 The 2013 National Immunization Conference (NIC) is scheduled for June 3-6, 2013, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia. Information regarding lodging, registration, and abstract submission guidelines will be posted on the NIC web section as it becomes available.  

Immunizations

Immunization Works Newsletter
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Immunization Works. 2012 Dec.