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In This Issue…
- AIRA at the 2020 Immunization Awardee Meeting
- Help Guide AIRA’s Activities Related to Vaccine Management, VFC, and IIS-Immunization Program Integration
- AIRA2020 National Meeting Is Knocking at the Door!
- AIRA 2020–2024 Strategic Plan
- Reminder/Recall Works to Improve Vaccination Rates! Join Us to Learn More
- Join AIRA at HIMSS20: Save on HIMSS20 by Registering Before February 10
- Measurement and Improvement Update
- AIRA 2019 Education Survey Summary Report
- AIRA Staff Meet to Plan for 2020 and Beyond
- Recent Information Requests Added to the AIRA Repository
- Steering Committee Updates: January Recap
Check Out the AIRA Events Calendar for Upcoming…
AIRA at the 2020 Immunization Awardee Meeting
AIRA staff attended the 2020 Immunization Awardee Meeting (IAM) January 28–30 at CDC’s Global Communications Center in Atlanta. The meeting theme was I AM Making an Impact and offered a forum for program managers, IIS managers, public health advisors, and others to learn important updates from CDC, as well as an opportunity to discuss challenges and opportunities with peers.
Leadership from the CDC and National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD) welcomed awardees to the meeting and provided an overview of the current state of immunization, including recent outbreaks and flu, resources, and NCIRD priorities. Dr. Melinda Wharton highlighted the importance of IIS in identifying pockets of low immunization and in supporting outbreak control efforts, and she commended the work of public health in controlling these outbreaks.
Subsequent sessions provided information related to 2020 core programming and component project funding, as well as updates to the application process and the 2020 Immunization Program Operations Manual, such as a new appendix K describing how VFC Compliance and Quality Improvement (VCQI) funds can be used to support IIS operations, as an example.
This year’s meeting included multiple sessions focused on IIS-related issues, including the release and overview of the new IIS Data Quality Blueprint, which focuses on improving data completeness, timeliness, availability, and validity with the end goals of using the IIS as a trusted source to (1) assess national, state, and local immunization coverage, (2) identify vulnerable populations and pockets of need, and (3) support responses to emerging needs. The Blueprint prioritizes measurable, achievable outcomes, will inform CDC’s technical assistance approach, and provides suggested activities that align with what is recommended and required as cooperative agreement activities to improve data quality and utilization.
Data quality sessions were offered to assist states in identifying which activities to include in their 2020 cooperative agreement applications, as were sessions on leveraging IIS consortiums and tracking IIS costs. Awardees not already signed up are encouraged to sign up for CDC’s IIS Info Brief by emailing i[email protected]. The 2019 IIS Annual Report is currently open and will be further aligned with the Data Quality Blueprint in the future.
Other sessions included Vaccine-Preventable Disease Preparedness; Vaccine Confidence and Vaccine Hesitancy, including an overview of CDC’s Vaccinate with Confidence strategic framework; Program Effectiveness Strategies; VFC Operations and Recruitment; future updates to CDC’s VaxView tool; and more.
Meeting slides and resources are available in the Immunization Services Division SharePoint portal.
Help Guide AIRA’s Activities Related to Vaccine Management, VFC, and IIS-Immunization Program Integration
AIRA is soliciting subject matter experts (SMEs) for a short-term workgroup to identify needs in the immunization and IIS communities related to vaccine management, the VFC program, and IIS-immunization program integration. The end product will help guide the work that AIRA performs over the next several years. We are looking for SMEs with knowledge of any of the areas listed above and a willingness to liaison with other members of their IIS and immunization program to learn about needs in other areas that are within the scope of this project. If you would be interested being considered as a volunteer SME for this workgroup, please email Beth Parilla at [email protected] by the end of the day on Friday, February 21.
AIRA2020 Is Knocking at the Door!
The call for abstracts, registration, and award nominations for the AIRA 2020 National Meeting are now open.
Join us! The AIRA 2020 National Meeting will be held in Portland, Oregon, August 11–13, 2020. Together, we will continue to work toward our common goal of promoting the use of immunization information to ensure healthy communities through the development and implementation of immunization information systems.
Check out the National Meeting website to:
- Submit an abstract
- Register for the event
- Reserve your hotel room
- Submit an award nomination
- Learn about sponsoring the meeting
AIRA 2020–2024 Strategic Plan
The AIRA Board of Directors recently completed the process of updating the AIRA strategic vision and plan. The new strategic plan covers a 5-year period, from 2020 to 2024. The purpose of a strategic plan is to set the overall goals of the association and create a plan for achieving those goals. Four priority areas for AIRA were identified through this process:
- Enhance IIS influence and relevance within the health information and technology landscape.
- Address the gap between member needs and utilization of AIRA resources and services.
- Provide the necessary organizational infrastructure to support the work of AIRA.
- Strengthen AIRA’s funding portfolio through diversification.
For each priority area, we have identified specific goals, activities, and strategies to help drive AIRA’s progress. AIRA is excited to share the finalized version of the 2020–2024 strategic plan with our members, supporting members, and other partners.
Reminder/Recall Works to Improve Vaccination Rates! Join Us to Learn More
If you missed AIRA’s first webinar earlier this week on centralized reminder/recall using an IIS, it’s not too late. We’re hosting two more webinars in this three-part webinar series on Tuesday, February 11 and Tuesday, February 18, 2020, both at 3 p.m. ET. We hope you’ll join us! Register for the second and third webinars today.
Why these Webinars? Reminder/recall is often an effective tool in improving vaccination rates. This webinar series shares methodologies for improving rates and enhancing your clinic and provider reminder/recall.
What’s the Plan? The first webinar on Tuesday, February 4, 2020, described current centralized reminder/recall best practices and provided an overview of a newly developed reminder/recall toolkit. The second webinar on Tuesday, February 11, 2020, will feature Colorado, New Mexico, and North Dakota’s experiences in initiating, planning, and executing reminder/recall. The third webinar will focus on monitoring/controlling, closing, and sustaining reminder/recall, based on experiences from Michigan, Minnesota, and New York City. As mentioned, if you missed the first webinar, please join us for the remaining webinar(s) in the series. We’ve strategically designed the webinars so you can jump into the series at any point and still get valuable information out of it.
Who should join? For those programs that are already doing reminder/recall, or have yet to start, this webinar is for you! The webinar was created for all IIS and immunization program managers and staff, immunization partners, and anyone with an interest in IIS-based reminder/recall. Thank you to everyone who participated in the first webinar, including North Dakota and the University of Colorado for their partnership in delivering this webinar series.
Join AIRA at HIMSS20: Save on HIMSS20 by Registering Before February 10
Join AIRA at HIMSS20 and save on registration! To receive the member discount, go to the conference website and select “Register Now”. Select AIRA’s name from the “Conference Collaborating Organizations” drop-down in the registration process and enter the code H20COLLAB. HIMSS20 will be held March 9–13, 2020, in Orlando, Florida.
Save the date! AIRA will also be hosting an information session during HIMSS20 on Tuesday, March 10, 2020, between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. The session will provide an overview of the capabilities of IIS across the U.S. and how they support both clinical and public health. The session will address AIRA’s Validation Program for IIS, along with key aspects of IIS, like Clinical Decision Support (CDS) and query response. There will also be time to answer participants’ questions about IIS and immunizations.
Measurement and Improvement Update
Thank You! AIRA and MACAW (the Measurement for Assessment and Certification Advisory Workgroup) would like to thank those who submitted comments on the proposed Incoming/Ongoing Assessment Measures and Tests, Clinical Decision Support (CDS) Assessment thresholds, and CDS Validation. MACAW will review community comments and present recommendations for AIRA board approval on February 17, 2020.
AART clinic signups are happening now! AART clinics will be held onsite at the AIRA 2020 National Meeting. One session will be offered for each IIS, so please coordinate with your colleagues to choose an appointment that works best for all of you and register today.
AART clinics are an opportunity to receive one-on-one feedback with AIRA technical staff. The entire IIS team, including your vendor representatives, is encouraged to attend a 30-minute clinic to learn how to use AART assessment reports to better understand how to align with national standards and inform planning. This is also your opportunity get specific questions or challenges answered by AIRA technical staff to help prioritize and move forward with IIS enhancements.
Need help now? AIRA’s technical assistance team is ready to assist you in understanding your AART dashboard and results, help prioritize work, and support your movement toward better alignment with standards. Do not hesitate to contact us for technical assistance. We can quickly answer a question or dive deeper into topics such as assisting you and your IIS technical development team to better understand issues and make plans to more fully align with standards. Fill out a Technical Assistance Request or contact Kristi Siahaya at [email protected] for more information.
AIRA 2019 Education Survey Summary Report
AIRA is excited to announce that the AIRA 2019 Education Survey Summary Report is now available. In early 2019, the AIRA Education Steering Committee assessed the educational needs of the IIS community. This report includes an analysis of the results, which will be used to guide the development of new resources and educational opportunities. We want to thank those of you who responded to the survey. We heard from 131 respondents, and responses were recorded from all member state and city immunization program jurisdictions, the District of Columbia, and six territories and islands.
AIRA Staff Meet to Plan for 2020 and Beyond
AIRA held an in-person staff meeting for three days in mid-January to review organizational priorities, discuss progress on strategies under AIRA’s Cooperative Agreements, and plan for AIRA’s future. The meeting provided a great opportunity for the staff to work together and unite under AIRA's mission. AIRA's last in-person staff meeting was held in December 2018. Since then, five new staff members have been added to the team.
Recent Information Requests Added to the AIRA Repository
No Information Requests were sent out in the month of January. Past Information Requests can be found by using the “Information Requests” filter in the AIRA repository. Information Requests are viewable only by individual members and individuals affiliated with member and partner organizations. Just log in to view these valuable resources! If you have any questions, please email membership coordinator Amanda Branham.
Steering Committee Updates: January Recap
- The Standards and Interoperability Steering Committee (SISC) met on January 8 and discussed the 2020 work plan.
- The committee approved the 2020 work plan.
- The SISC also discussed the updated HL7 FAQ document and reviewed the changes.
- The committee decided to put the SISC Technical Workgroup on hiatus. Its meetings will be scheduled on an as-needed basis going forward.
MIROW Steering Committee
NOTE: Steering Committee minutes will capture only action items and decisions made. Recordings of the meetings can be obtained directly upon request by emailing [email protected].
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