Immunization resources and tools

Vaccination is considered one of the 12 great achievements in the history of public health. As public health associations in Canada point out, one hundred years ago infectious diseases were the leading causes of death worldwide. Now thanks to advances in vaccines and immunization they are the cause of less than 5% of all deaths in Canada. But the capacity to maintain our immunization efforts is always stretched. We can lose ground. That is why building an even stronger team across the whole health sector to contribute to our fight against infectious diseases has never been more important. Expanding the contribution of pharmacists in the vaccination efforts is another milestone in building a strong system for public health.

Ted Bruce
Co-Chair, Policy Advocacy Research Committee
Public Health Association of BC

Non-publicly funded vaccines

Over the past decade, a number of important new vaccines have been approved for use in Canada but are not publicly-funded at this time. Health care providers such as physicians, public health nurses, pharmacists, and other vaccine providers should communicate relevant information about all available vaccines, publicly-funded or not, to allow patients to make informed decisions about their health. The following resources provide further information on non-publicly funded vaccines in Canada:

• National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI)
• Canadian Paediatric Society
• Canadian Immunization Guide
• Public Health Agency of Canada: Vaccines and immunization
• ImmunizeBC
• HealthLinkBC files