September 2016 I What's New

Best Practices Conference and 2nd National HPV Roundtable Meeting

On August 29th, an energized group of 580 people participated in the Best and Promising Practices for Increasing HPV Vaccination Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. At the conference, national experts presented and debated on the latest high-impact strategies for increasing HPV vaccination in boys and girls. Sessions included Reminder/Recall and Immunization Information Systems, Quality Improvement and Continuing Education, Provider Recommendations and Parent Education. You can access the conference agenda or view the entire conference anytime.

Following the Conference, representatives from 70 organizations convened August 30th-31st for the 2nd National HPV Vaccination Roundtable National Meeting. At this meeting, a national coalition of public, private, and voluntary organizations and invited individuals worked together to increase HPV vaccination coverage. On the first day of the Roundtable, attendees were presented with a history of the roundtable, an overview of CDC’s cancer prevention and immunization strategies, scientific presentations on HPV cancer disparities, and evidence for vaccinating boys and girls at age 11-12. The second day of the meeting focused on showcasing the work of the 7 Task Groups and discussion of their work on pilot projects. View the meeting agenda, watch slide presentations, or HPV survivor videos. For more information on the HPV Roundtable, please see the Partner Spotlight section.

Continuing Education for Allied Health Professionals: “Someone You Love: The HPV Epidemic”

The Indiana Immunization Coalition (IIC) is excited to offer free online Continuing Education (CE) Credits for watching the award-winning documentary “Someone You Love: The HPV Epidemic.” This film provides an opportunity to understand the serious impact on the lives of those affected by HPV. For allied health professionals, these stories portray the misconceptions, stigma, shame, heartbreak, pain, and triumph experienced by patients, their friends, and families while battling cervical cancer.

You can obtain ME, CNE, or Pharmacy CE Credits for “Someone You Love: The HPV Epidemic” online. For nurses who attended a live viewing, credits are awarded after completing of an online evaluationfor CNE credits. For, physicians or pharmacists who watch the film at a live event, please follow instructions to obtain CME or Pharmacy CE credits.

Partner Spotlight: American Cancer Society

It seems obvious that the American Cancer Society would be a frontrunner in the fight against HPV cancer. However the Society probably isn’t the first organization that comes to mind when immunization programs list their partners. Established in 1913, the American Cancer Society is the largest voluntary health organization in the United States and is dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health concern through research, education, advocacy, and service.

The Society’s Cancer Control Department supports the delivery of health care provider resources and programs as well as professional development and training opportunities worldwide. The Society also brings extensive experience in evaluating programs and a wealth of expertise in monitoring and interpreting population-based and study outcomes related to cancer control and prevention. It is this unique set of capabilities that allows the Society to work across the fields of cancer prevention and immunization to support HPV cancer prevention activities, especially with clinicians.

Debbie Saslow PhD, Director of Cancer Control Intervention for HPV Vaccination and Women’s Cancers for the Society, is the principal investigator on two cooperative agreements with CDC to increase HPV vaccination. Dr. Saslow is no stranger to prevention of HPV cancers, as she served as the director of breast and gynecologic cancer at the Society for 18 years and has been instrumental in the development of the Society’s recommendations on HPV vaccination. Recently the Society updated their HPV vaccination recommendations, and Dr. Saslow stated “It is critical that all the stakeholders here—families, health care providers, and others—make HPV vaccination a priority, so that prevention of the vast majority of cervical, vaginal, vulvar, anal, penile, and oropharyngeal cancers can become a reality.

The joining of those stakeholders became a reality in 2014, when the Society and CDC created the National HPV Vaccination Roundtable. The HPV Roundtable is a national coalition of more than 70 public, private, and voluntary organizations, as well as invited individuals, dedicated to reducing the incidence of and mortality from HPV cancers in the US, through coordinated leadership and strategic planning.

The same year, the Society started the HPV VACs (Vaccinate Adolescents against Cancers) Project. The VACs project expands current cancer prevention and early detection activities with FQHCs to increase HPV vaccination through improved provider awareness and education and improved system-wide processes. Additionally, the Society partners with state health departments and other state-based entities to facilitate system changes that increase the availability and utilization of the HPV vaccine.

Collectively the two projects have a number resources that you can access to improve the work you and your partners are doing to improve HPV vaccination rates. The HPV Vaccination Initiative Contact Map provides contact information for various HPV vaccination initiatives. This map provides a visual display of U.S. HPV vaccination uptake initiatives/interventions that is public and searchable by state,organization and project type. The HPV Roundtable Provider Training Task Group just launched a publicly accessible website for their HPV Vaccination Resource Clearinghouse, where resources can be found to support the implementation of strategies to increase HPV vaccination. The Clearinghouse features Patient Education Tools and Provider Education Tools, including printable educational materials, vaccine information statements, toolkits, and multimedia to increase HPV vaccination awareness and uptake. The HPV Cancer Survivor Organization Database provides access to HPV-related cancer survivors, who have a unique voice in the HPV cancer prevention dialogue. Inviting a survivor to tell his or her story at a meeting, grand rounds, conference, or other event can be a powerful addition to your program or presentation.

If you are interested in receiving more information regarding the Roundtable (monthly updates, etc.) please fill out their Interest Survey or contact them with additional questions at HPV.Vaccination.Roundtable@cancer.org.

You can follow the National HPV Vaccination Roundtable on Twitter through their handle, @HPVRoundtable.

Announcements

PreteenVaxScene Webinar on Motivating Clinicians Through AFIX on Oct 11 at Noon ET

Join us Tuesday, October 11, 2016 at 12:00PM EST for the next #PreteenVaxScene webinar “In Real Life: Using AFIX to Empower Clinicians to Increase HPV Vaccination Rates.”

Mary Beth Koslap-Petraco DNP, PNP-BC, CPNP, FAANP will be sharing her evidence-based approach in conducting AFIX visits. Dr. Koslap-Petraco will share how she inspires clinicians daily to change how they practice and increase their HPV vaccination rates. Dr. Koslap-Petraco is the Coordinator of Child Health at the Suffolk County Department of Health Services in Suffolk County, New York and an HPV Vaccine Office Champion.

This webinar will be geared towards AFIX coordinators, AFIX program field staff, trainers of field staff, and immunization managers, as the presenter will share specific interventions that were used to increase HPV vaccination rates and were utilized during AFIX visits.

2016 AAP NCE

If you’re attending the AAP Experience National Conference & Exhibition, October 22nd-25th in S an Francisco, please stop by our exhibit booth (#1313) to say hi! Our Adolescent Immunization Communications Team always enjoys meeting you, our partners, and learning more about your great work. We’ll also have exciting resources and tools on hand on adolescent immunizations! If you haven’t registered yet for the conference, you can contact AAP registration via email with any questions or concerns.

Coming Next Month

Draft agenda available for the next Meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) on October 19-20—be on the lookout for additional information!