MDH launches new effort to improve HPV vaccination rates among state’s adolescents

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) today announced a new effort to increase coverage rates for the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine among adolescents in the state. The plan includes a public awareness campaign geared toward families of adolescents, a direct mailing with vaccination reminders and education opportunities for health care providers.

The effort was made possible by a $600,000 grant awarded to the department by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Following a competitive process, Minnesota was one of 7 states and 4 cities to be awarded the funds.

The primary purpose of the HPV vaccine is to prevent cancer. The vaccine protects against the strains of HPV that cause 70 percent of cervical cancer in women as well as several other types of cancers in men and women. The vaccine, given in a series of three shots, is recommended for adolescent girls and boys beginning at 11 years of age. It can be given at the same time as the vaccines that prevent whooping cough and meningococcal disease, as well as any other vaccines an adolescent may be due to receive.

Despite its cancer-fighting ability, the vaccine is greatly underused, health officials say. According to a 2012 survey, only 33.1 percent of young women in Minnesota had received the full three doses, mirroring the national rate of 33.4 percent, and slightly more than 59 percent of Minnesota girls had received the first dose. Among teen boys, to whom the recommendation was more recently expanded, first-dose vaccine coverage was only 20.8 percent.

"Taking into account cervical cancer alone, if we could vaccinate 80 percent of young women in the U.S. today, we could prevent 98,800 cases of cancer and 31,700 deaths, according to CDC estimates," said Kristen Ehresmann, director of infectious disease for MDH. "Our goal in Minnesota is to reach that 80 percent coverage level of three doses of HPV vaccine for females age 13 to 15 by 2020. We hope this grant will give us a big boost toward that goal."

Minnesota’s three-part strategy for using the grant includes the following:

• A public awareness campaign will use a variety of media and advertising vehicles to reach high-school and middle- school-age students and their families, including working with culturally and ethnically diverse media outlets to place ads and articles about HPV and other adolescent vaccines.
• In its postcard reminder project, MDH will send postcards to the families of all 11- and 12-year-olds in the state informing them of the importance of the adolescent vaccines and encouraging vaccination.
• For the health care community, MDH will offer a variety of in-person and online opportunities for providers to update their knowledge and skills regarding adolescent vaccination. Provider education is important, Ehresmann said, because studies consistently show that a strong recommendation from a provider is the single best predictor of vaccination and an important factor in a parent's decision to vaccinate their child.

The grant activities will complement the department’s efforts to inform parents and health care providers of new immunization requirements for school enrollment that take effect this fall, including Tdap and meningococcal vaccines for adolescents. While HPV is not included in the new requirements, MDH strongly recommends that adolescents receive all three vaccines at the same time. These activities also coincide with the Minnesota Cancer Alliance’s current initiative to promote HPV vaccine as a cancer prevention measure.

The HPV grant runs through Dec. 31, 2014.

Sanford Health to implement mandatory employee influenza vaccination policy

(Fargo, ND) - Sanford Health announced today it plans to implement mandatory influenza vaccinations for all Sanford employees and physicians effective with the 2013-2014 influenza season. The organization made the decision in order to maximize patient safety and protect its employees against influenza.

"This decision will protect our patients and also protect our employees during this upcoming influenza season. It's a decision that our physicians support. Sanford Health's physician leadership groups, our Boards of Governors, in all four of our regions have unanimously recommended mandatory influenza vaccinations for all employees," said Paul Carson, MD, medical director, Sanford Health infection prevention and control, Fargo region.

Mandatory influenza vaccinations for health care workers have been endorsed by prestigious health care organizations, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Hospital Association (AHA), the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American College of Physicians (ACP) and the South Dakota Association of Health Care Organizations (SDAHO). Many health systems across the country are also implementing mandatory influenza vaccinations this year.

Sanford Bismarck has already demonstrated success with influenza vaccinations. The region successfully implemented mandatory influenza vaccinations for its employees in 2010 and has achieved near 100 percent vaccination.

The new policy includes employees and physicians, as well as students, volunteers, contracted workers, locums and vendors. Exceptions to the required immunization will be granted for medical or religious reasons only.

 

August is good time to check on your child's vaccinations, health officials say

 Back to school time is fast approaching and state health officials are reminding parents to make sure their children have the benefit of being fully vaccinated against an array of potentially serious childhood diseases. Now is the time to check with your health care provider to make sure your child is up to date on the vaccines he or she needs to start school.

New data released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reaffirms that the vast majority of children in Minnesota enter kindergarten fully vaccinated. In 2012-13, 96.1 percent of all kindergarteners had received all of the immunizations required by Minnesota's school immunization law to protect them against vaccine-preventable diseases. The percent of children who entered kindergarten fully vaccinated has remained steady at about 96 percent since 2005, according to data from the CDC and the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).

In the 2012-13 school year, 1.6 percent of students entering kindergarten in Minnesota were exempt from all vaccines. "It's a small group compared to those who are vaccinated, but it still leaves the door open for a vaccine-preventable disease to sneak in and make a child very sick or worse," said Kris Ehresmann, director of the Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Prevention and Control Division at MDH. "We're always striving for 100 percent vaccination coverage."

The remaining 2.3 percent of children were partially vaccinated at the time schools reported compliance with the requirements. Some of these children likely went on to be vaccinated after the date when the data were collected or they obtained a legal exemption to some, but not all vaccines.

The importance of childhood vaccines can be highlighted with the resurgence of pertussis (whooping cough). High vaccination rates with DTaP, the pediatric vaccine that provides pertussis protection, plays an important role in keeping levels of pertussis down in a community. This past year, over 80 cases of pertussis were reported in a small Minnesota community. The outbreak started in a youth mission trip then moved throughout the community and into the schools, affecting mostly adolescents. Even with this significant increase in pertussis disease, the high rates of vaccination in young children prevented spread to the younger age groups.

"It's very reassuring to see that Minnesota has been able to maintain a high vaccination rate for our kindergarteners," said Karen Ernst, co-founder of the Minnesota Childhood Immunization Coalition. "I think it's important for parents out there to know that vaccinating your child is the norm. Parents who choose not to vaccinate are relying on the rest of us to protect their child and are leaving their child susceptible to disease."

Having a high vaccination rate is vital for the health of the population because it prevents disease from spreading. This is especially important for protecting those who can't be vaccinated because of a medical condition or who don't respond to immunization because of a weak immune system.

For copies of your child's vaccination records, talk to your doctor or call the Minnesota Immunization Information Connection (MIIC) at 651-201-5503 or 1-800-657-3970. More information is also available from The CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6230a3.htm?s_cid=mm6230a3_em , and Minnesota Public Health Data Access, https://apps.health.state.mn.us/mndata/immunization.