Victorian Specialist Immunisation Services (VicSIS) - bolstering adult clinics for COVID-19 vaccines

• Main Authors: Sally F. Gordon (Author), Elise Virah Sawmy (Author), Eleanor Duckworth (Author), Michelle Wolthuizen (Author), Hazel J. Clothier (Author), Malinda Chea (Author), Naveen Tenneti (Author), Ngaree Blow (Author), Jim P. Buttery (Author), Joseph de Luca (Author), Tony M. Korman (Author), Sara Barnes (Author), Charlotte Slade (Author), Callum Maggs (Author), Michelle L. Giles (Author), Benjamin W. Teh (Author), Craig Aboltins (Author), Katherine M. Langan (Author), Annaliese Van Diemen (Author), Nigel W. Crawford (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group, 2022-11-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 2164-5515; 2164-554X; 10.1080/21645515.2022.2052701
• Keywords: covid-19; vaccines; vaccination; vaccine allergy; immunisation service; Immunologic diseases. Allergy; RC581-607; Therapeutics. Pharmacology; RM1-950
• Source: Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, Vol 18, Iss 5 (2022)

The Victorian Specialist Immunization Services (VicSIS) was established in Victoria, Australia, in February 2021, aiming to enhance vaccine safety services for Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines. VicSIS supports practitioners and patients with complex vaccine safety questions, including those who experience adverse events following immunization (AEFI) after COVID-19 vaccines. VicSIS provides individual vaccination recommendations, allergy testing, vaccine challenges, and vaccination under supervision. VicSIS initially comprised of eight adult COVID-19 specialist vaccination clinics, subsequently, expanding to better support pediatric patients as the Australian vaccine roll-out extended to adolescents and children. Since their establishment to September 2021, the inaugural VicSIS clinics received a total of 26,401 referrals and reviewed 6,079 patients. Consults were initially predominantly for pre-vaccination reviews, later predominantly becoming post-vaccination AEFI reviews as the program progressed. Regardless of the type of consult, the most common consult outcome was a recommendation for routine vaccination (73% and 55% of consult outcomes respectively). VicSIS is an integral component of the COVID-19 vaccination program and supports confidence in COVID-19 vaccine safety by providing consistent advice across the state. VicSIS aims to strengthen the health system through the pandemic, bolstering specialist immunization services beyond COVID-19 vaccines, including training the next generation of vaccinology experts.