December Holiday Power Outage and Vaccine Storage and Handling Reminders
December Holiday Power Outage and Vaccine Storage and Handling Reminders
Article
Quick facts
Several communities across Halton Region experienced power outages over the holidays, resulting in vaccine cold chain exposures due to adverse storage conditions.
Review your thermometer and vaccine temperature log book for temperatures outside of +2⁰C to +8⁰C. If the temperature in your refrigerator is below +2°C and/or above +8°C, quarantine the vaccines in refrigeration and contact Halton Region Public Health, by calling 311 immediately. Prompt notification is important to minimize vaccine wastage and ensure patient safety.
Review the Vaccine Storage and Handling Guidelines (external PDF) and ensure that all health care providers and designated employees at your facility understand how to properly store and handle publicly funded vaccines.
Review your facility’s contingency plan for vaccine storage in the event of a refrigerator malfunction and electrical disruptions.
Contact Halton Region Public Health regarding vaccine storage and handling resources and support.
Key messages for healthcare providers
Failure to adhere to cold chain requirements may reduce vaccine potency, resulting in lack of protection against vaccine preventable diseases.
The loss of vaccine effectiveness due to exposures to adverse conditions is cumulative, permanent and irreversible.
To ensure adequate protection, re-immunization may be recommended if patients are immunized with a vaccine that has not been stored properly.
