Keeping track of immunization records is not only necessary for enrollment during the child care process, but it is also an ongoing commitment to keeping the child’s immunizations up-to-date, receiving alerts and making note of any relevant information for the future.
To learn more about immunization records, why they are important and how a piece of software is able to transform your administrative functions, read on.
How to Help Parents Locate Vaccination Records
Locating immunization records is notoriously time-consuming. When gathering information on a child’s immunization, one can check:
- The child’s family doctor or clinic
- The state’s immunization registry
- The child’s school
If, however, the vaccination records can’t be collected in this way, there are a few actions that you can take to get the child back on track as best as possible. To track down elusive immunization records, first, try the local medical society or state medical board. A much more extreme method is to conduct serologic testing for immunity. This particular treatment is an alternative to vaccination for certain antigens, according to Very Well Family.
If you’re coming into the later years of the immunization process and the child’s parents would like to keep their own records rather than rely on nurses, a system that allows you to get a clear look at the child’s current records and upcoming needs is highly valuable. The standard schedule may not be relevant to them if they are instead following their own modified schedule.
For more information about resources for recording and finding immunization records, check out the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s tips here.
Once you’ve embarked on the search for a few children’s records and continue to have difficulty locating records, you will understand the value and importance of having easily accessible digitized files.
Required Vaccines for Child Care and School
As a child care provider, it is likely you know that certain vaccines are required in order to enroll a child in child care. However, you may not realize that each state decides which vaccines are required for a child’s enrollment and attendance at a child care facility or school in their state. This means that your immunization records must be in adherence to your particular state’s child care enrollment requirements.
This is where the state requirements for child care enrollment comes in, but as mentioned each state has slightly different requirements. For example, Colorado requires that children have the following vaccines before they are allowed into child care:
- Hepatitis B
- Diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (DTap)
- Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib)
- Inactivated poliovirus (IPV)
- Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV13) or polysaccharide (PPSV23)
- Measles, mumps, rubella (MMR).
- Varicella (Common name: chickenpox)
This varies slightly from what is expected for child care and for school, so it’s important to have the ability to track your child’s immunization records and alerts against what is expected in your particular state.
Immunization Schedules
Immunizations are recommended at certain ages and intervals by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For example, beginning at birth and the following two months, children are recommended to receive their Hepatitis B, Rotavirus, Diphtheria, tetanus, acellular Pertussis, Haemophilus influenza type b, Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV13) and Inactivated poliovirus. From this age, a variety of other vaccines are recommended that would not be given any earlier.
What is Tracking and Why is it important?
Immunizations, according to Unicef, is one of the most cost-effective methods for combating diseases and viruses. In fact, Unicef also reports that an estimated two to three million deaths are avoided throughout the year due to vaccinations.
Ensuring that youth are immunized adequately and regularly requires more than just setting appointments - it’s maintaining the records afterward for future reference. As a result, it has become increasingly important to utilize a user-friendly database to store records in a logical, easy-to-access way.
An immunization record keeping software will be able to assist you in accurately recording each child’s schedule of required vaccinations. This is not only because some vaccinations require several doses at unique intervals, but some children are on a slightly modified schedule to account for their unique situation.
An immunization tracker should also have the ability to send reminders for when the child’s upcoming vaccine is due. As the World Health Organization states, monitoring immunization records help to ensure that all infants, children and pregnant women are immunized with all the necessary vaccines and at the right intervals, vaccines are delivered in adequate quantities at the right time, information on disease incidence and events following immunizations is collected and available.
The World Health Organization also mentions that it is important that records are completed accurately to track defaulters and let caregivers and adults know when they are due for their next immunizations.
Best Tools to Record Your Vaccinations
Finding immunization records from years back can be time-consuming, difficult and frustrating, especially when relying specifically on paperwork.
Traditional Paperwork
Every visit to your physician for a vaccine means some associated paperwork to record your vaccine dosage and date of immunization. These records can be filed for later reference somewhere safe.
Shared Workspace Drive
You can simply scan a child’s paperwork and upload it to a shared drive, but this drastically limits your ability to pull up the specific information and keep a reminder schedule necessary for each student.
Child Care Management System
A child care management system streamlines administrative tasks, improving efficiencies in both the tracking and referencing of immunizations records. This allows you to reference child immunization records, stick to a schedule and even pull information up regarding dosage and the specific administering physician.
Record Your Vaccinations Effectively
As with any business, administrative tasks take time away from the focus of the business - in your case, providing an exceptional early learning experience for children. With a Child Care Management System, you’ll be able to spend less time digging into immunization records and more time teaching and interacting with your children.
Learn more about Early Learning Ventures’ Child Care Management System and request a demo here.
Are you looking for more child care management information? Check out our Ultimate Guide to Child Care Management.
Our child care management system makes running your child care program simple and efficient. Get back to what's most important. You shouldn't have to spend more time on the administrative tasks than you do with children and staff.
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Do you run an early childhood association made up of child care providers? If so, check out our Ultimate Guide to Shared Service Alliance.
Header image courtesy of Jumpstory.
