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Updates & News
You didn’t come this far to stop learning
February 2026
UPDATES FOR ALL
Hepatitis B household contract tracing pilot on its way! See here for documents relating to a chronic hepatitis B contact tracing pilot.
CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS
TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS
You might remember me mentioning David last month. We got together last week to do some filming and acted out a consultation together. We are editing away in the background so watch this space to see the outcome of our labour!! We turned David's apartment into a clinic slash studio. More work goes into these things than you might imagine...
2nd Feb: Hepatitis A infection: prevention and control guidance updated with some translated materials. This is important guidance to help public health professionals manage hepatitis A infections and recommendations for pre-exposure immunisation.
I've been getting a lot of questions around Nipah lately on the back of confirmed cases in India during January. At present, cases remain low and health officials have said there is no reason for fear an outbreak. Pakistan has nonetheless introduced enhanced screening checks for people who have travelled in from India. Pakistan is also about to launch the first nationwide polio vaccination campaign of this year in Feb. The campaign aims to immunise over 45 million children. Go Pakistan!!
ADULT IMMUNISATION NEWS
2nd Feb: RSV vaccination for older adults: expansion of eligibility. See here for Information on the expansion of the eligibility criteria of the older adults respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccination programme from 1 April 2026. Don't forget (See news item last month) In February 2026 NHSE is running a national RSV invitation campaign to support uptake. Invitations will be sent to unvaccinated individuals that are eligible for the CURRENT older adults RSV vaccination programme. The Green Book has also been updated with latest evidence and details of the catch-up programme for people age 80 and over, JCVI advice on clesrovimab, and MHRA guidance on preF vaccines.
CLICK ON A VACCINE FOR A DEEPER DIVE (all the news items also go into the individual portals if you want to concentrate on updates for a specific disease)
January 2026
Influenza uptake data to 31st Dec 2025
UPDATES FOR ALL
Happy New Year all!!
I've just added this Nov 25 study to the injection technique bit of the site. Thanks Fray - good spot. Tattoo ink induces inflammation in the draining lymph node and alters the immune response to vaccination.
5th Jan: PGD template updated to support the national pneumococcal vaccine (13-valent or 15-valent, adsorbed) (PCV) vaccination programme. Amended to:
remove immunisation of individuals from 6 weeks of age in response to an outbreak of pneumococcal disease due to introduction of PCV20 for outbreaks
update 8-week dose interval to 4-week interval as per updated Green Book Chapter 25
inform to use PCV20 PGD for routine programme for individuals who have asplenia, splenic dysfunction, complement disorder or severe immunocompromise
delete off label use of dose schedules as SPC states that the schedules should be in accordance with national recommendations
add Prevenar 13® is interchangeable with other PCV vaccines as per the Green Book Chapter 25 in off-label section
add minimum 4-week dose interval in accordance with the Green Book, Chapter 25 where 8-week dose interval is indicated in the SPCs in off-label section
5th Jan: While the UK is busy adding more important vaccines to the schedule, the USA is doing the opposite. This does not bode well for the resurgence of infectious diseases :-( US to slash routine vaccine recommendations for children in major change experts say creates doubt.
8th Jan: Flu update: Over 18.6 million eligible people have been vaccinated so far and nationally, reminders are going out to 300,000 at risk children next week. With flu still circulating please continue to do all you can to encourage eligible people to have their vaccine. Don't forget yourself too! Uptake of the vaccine among HCP's was 44% up to the 31st Dec.
14th Jan: latest ponderings: Does EMLA interfere with vaccines? What the evidence actually says
14th Jan: Updated contact details in here: Measles: public health response to cases who have travelled whilst infectious (Guidance about infectious measles linked to international travel, including air, sea and land crossings)
19th Jan: Pneumococcal vaccination for older adults and for individuals in a clinical risk group: Information for healthcare practitioners published to aid with implementing the transition to PCV20. There is advice in there such as once available to order, even if PPV23 stocks haven’t finished, PCV20 should be used for those aged 2 years and above with severe immunosuppression. Additionally, health protection teams may access the national supply for management of outbreaks of pneumococcal disease in closed settings. However, in order to avoid wastage, PCV20 will not be available to order for other indications until the national stock of PPV23 has been exhausted. If PPV23 is indicated for an individual and is in the fridge, it must be used up first.
19th Jan: Updated versions of the GP and community pharmacy seasonal vaccination service specifications have been published. These have been updated to reflect changes to the COVID-19 vaccine ordering process, and new terminology for patients who may require a COVID-19 vaccination outside of usual campaign timing.
20th Jan: Measles resurgence: Global Virus Network calls for urgent action
22nd Jan: UKHSA have produced a blog intended for the public called: What is measles and why is it so important we're up to date with our vaccines to protect against it? Not the best grammar, but an important message.
23rd Jan: Measles: the green book chapter updated to align wording to other Green book chapters.
Oh RFK what are you thinking? RFK Jr. appoints 2 vocal opponents of vaccine use in pregnancy to federal advisory board. But there is a glimmer of hope for the US vaccine programmes - pushback is clearly in force: States, health organizations reject new CDC vaccine guidance
29th Jan: 1 in 4 school-leavers unprotected by HPV vaccine
Jan 2026: No link found between routine childhood vaccines, aluminum adjuvants, and epilepsy risk
CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS
1st Jan: Exciting bit of news to start the year off! Families to have better access to childhood vaccinations: A new £2 million pilot will see health visitors reach families facing barriers to vaccines, to ensure more children are protected. I'm excited to hear what people think of this on the imms updates. Let me know your thoughts :-) Also looking forward to meeting more Health Visitors on courses (hopefully!).
Also, here we go with MMRV.... Good luck everyone!! I've heard on the grapevine that people have been struggling with the EMIS templates - apparently a bit of jiggery pokery on the back end solves things and updates it to the new template. Ask your managers! Don't forget your Red Book updated pages as well.
12th Jan: Wow - there have been so many questions about MMRV, and much confusion. Eeeek. Today the Information for Healthcare Practitioners document has been updated to clarify the catch-up cohort eligibility and common questions about immunising children who have fallen behind on the routine schedule. THIS is a useful table confirming what to offer those who are behind with their schedule. Much needed guidance!!!
15th Jan: Varicella Green Book Chapter revised.
19th Jan: Mumps Green Book Chapter revised to include the MMRV vaccine.
21st Jan: Some MUCH NEEDED clarification updates in the PGD template for MMRV
29th Jan: Some vaccine coverage data has appeared for HPV, Men ACWY and the school leaver Td/IPV boosters which I have highlighted key points in more detail in each of the related portals. Although there is always room for improvement (particularly in London it seems), it's nice to see that all groups had increases in uptake from 23-24.
TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS
If you are travelling soon check out NaTHNaC's festive travel safely tips!
So proud of my awesome mate and fellow travel health specialist nurse, David for launching his YouTube channel this month. Check it out! And feel free to recommend it to your travellers for some trustworthy traveller-centred information. Here's his fabulous website!
8th Jan: Ixiaro is now back in stock for direct ordering on www.valneva.co.uk; after a period of having to place limits on supply, they now have enough inventory to last for about 4-5 months, so are not expecting to have to place limits on Ixiaro. Thanks for the update Jo!
9th Jan: Novel cholera vaccine shows promise in phase 1 trial. Hello and good luck to 'PanChol' (pandemic cholera vaccine), another single-dose, live-attenuated oral cholera vaccine derived from the V cholerae 01 strain, which has been responsible for most global cholera outbreaks.
Loving the re-jig to make the educational events section more visible on Travel Health Pro. Oh NaTHNaC, we do love you.
ABTA has launched its Destinations to Watch report for 2026. Get some inspiration for your next trip!
From Valneva: New downloadable content. There are three videos for your digital displays: Chikungunya map, Japanese Encephalitis Map and a Mosquito-borne disease video.
ADULT IMMUNISATION NEWS
15th Jan 2025: RSV vaccine coverage report in older adults in England up to November 2025 published. Vaccine coverage in the routine and catch-up cohorts combined reached 61.9%. I think the most striking disparity between all the demographic variables was in the ethnic group category, with the highest coverage reported among White-British (65.3%) and the lowest among Asian or Asian British - Pakistani (24.0%). The maternal vaccination programme also showed a disparity here too with coverage varying wildly by ethnic group: the highest coverage was reported among 'Other' ethnic group – Chinese (79.6%) and the lowest among Black or Black British – Caribbean (28.5%).
22nd Jan: In February 2026 NHSE is running a national RSV invitation campaign to support uptake. Invitations will be sent to unvaccinated individuals that are eligible for the older adults RSV vaccination programme. The invitation will advise people to contact their GP to book an RSV vaccination appointment. In areas where community pharmacy providers are commissioned to deliver RSV vaccinations, the invitation will also include a link to the National Booking Service and RSV walk-in service finder. Get stocking up!! (And don't forget to continue proactively calling and recalling as usual)
Useful cheat sheet from Wales
Interesting reading this month:
Child health in international travel: A German airport survey. Bottom line: Many families do not, or not correctly, follow recommended prevention measures.
Guardian article: NHS spending up to £19k a time treating people suffering after overseas surgery, research finds: Study suggests as many as 53% of ‘medical tourists’ end up with complications such as infections and organ failure
More than half a million chikungunya cases reported globally in 2025
Early trial of Nipah virus vaccine shows promise
How can one NOT be intrigued by this title? He made beer that’s also a vaccine. Now controversy is brewing. I totally agree that new delivery methods are needed - I just hope this chap gets the ethical approval and doesn't flaunt the experimentation rules much further. His heart is in the right place.
Analysis of the non-natural deaths of US citizens while abroad. Not suprising that RTAs feature in this.
Written in Nov 2025 but I only just discovered this interesting article now: Association between vaccinations and risk of dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Conclusions? Adult vaccinations, particularly against herpes zoster, influenza, pneumococcus and Tdap, are associated with a lower risk of dementia. Should vaccination strategies be incorporated into public health initiatives for dementia prevention?.
December 2025
UPDATES FOR ALL
1st Dec: Another updated poster: A visual Guide to Vaccines.
3rd Dec: And another important cheat sheet update : Vaccination of individuals with uncertain or incomplete immunisation
This looks good! Make Every Contact Count (MECC): Supporting Access to Vaccination and Screening Webinar 16th Dec 1.30-3pm
Not really an update, but for OH staff this is useful doc that I wasn't aware of and tetanus and hepatitis B vaccines are mentioned... Managing a human bite
8th Dec: A new Mpox strain? Clade 11B is one to watch it seems...
10th Dec: Everyone's favourite cheat sheet has had another update in prep for Jan 2026: The complete routine immunisation schedule. And PCV20 has finally made an appearance from Jan 2026. Check it out.
10th Dec: the Diphtheria vaccination resources have had an update too with regards to vaccine record for asylum seekers. Very important considering most of the UK cases have been in these groups.
11th Dec: Just a reminder to grab your jab if not already. An average of 2660 patients a day were in hospital with flu last week.This is the highest ever for this time of year and up 55% from the 1717 admissions last week. NHS England has warned that up to 8,000 hospital beds could be filled with flu patients by the weekend.
12th Dec: Updated Tuberculosis (TB) information sheet.
12th Dec: South Carolina measles outbreak accelerates as cases rise to 126
15th Dec: Service specification is out for community pharmacy seasonal vaccination services – COVID-19 and influenza vaccination advanced services. Also JCVI advice has been accepted on spring 2026 COVID-19 vaccination programme. Basically - it's the same eligibility as 2025.
18th Dec: the 2024 tetanus reports are in. There were 6 cases recorded between January to December 2024; there were 2 fatalities. 4 of the cases were associated with domestic injuries. The cases ranged in age from 22 to 94 years, with 4 cases born before 1961 when routine childhood vaccination was introduced in the UK. Only 2 cases were male. Cases occurred between April and September. Four of the cases were injured in the garden; 1 case was bitten by a dog; and 1 case sustained an abrasion after tripping and falling onto gravel. One of the cases with mild infection had vaccination records that could be verified. This individual had received 4 doses of tetanus-containing vaccine; however, the most recent dose was over 10 years prior to infection. Immunisation history was not known/reported for the other 5 cases; this includes the 2 fatal cases, who were both born before the introduction of tetanus vaccination into the national programme.
19th Dec: COVID-19 Green Book Chapter updated. (Very small change of citation).
22nd Dec: Laboratory confirmed cases of pertussis in England: annual report for 2024 is in. In England, there were 14,879 new laboratory confirmed cases of pertussis in 2024. The number of cases in 2024 were the highest reported since 1994. There were 11 reported infant deaths from pertussis between January and December 2024. The 14,879 confirmed cases in England in 2024 were substantially higher than the 857 cases reported in 2023 and 58.8% higher than the last major outbreak in 2012 when 9,367 cases were reported. Thankfully, vaccination coverage is steadily improving.
22nd Dec: GP Contract is out.
23rd Dec: Vaccine update is out! Bit of Christmas reading. I would like to add my own thoughts here. The VU comments that "2025 has been one of the most ambitious years for change in the national Immunisation programme in 30 years". I'm sure we all agree on this. As an immunisation tutor it's certainly been very challenging to keep up and disseminate all the info, but those actually doing the job have had the hardest time of all. And well done to you if this is YOU. Hope you enjoy lots of well-deserved treats over the festive season while you brace your self for the final phase of the MMRV addition in Jan 2026.
24th Dec: What to expect after vaccinations leaflet updated in line with changes from Jan 2026.
31st Dec: Last update of the year: The Rubella Green Book chapter has been updated to reflect the addition of MMRV.
CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS
1st Dec: This somber article is about Men B. Will this one day be on the adolescent schedule? Keep an eye on ABCWY vaccine progress... Our daughter died from meningitis after starting uni - a jab would have saved her
1st Dec: Another updated cheat sheet alert! Routine childhood immunisation schedule
3rd Dec: This is such promising news about a new nasal vaccine for pertussis.
3rd Dec: Varicella Green Book chapter updated today, No doubt measles, mumps and rubella updates will follow... actually, as soon as I wrote this measles was updated too.
8th Dec: New MMRV poster for the public.
8th Dec: If you signed up for the webinar last week about MMRV the resources have been emailed out now. The slides and webinar recording link are here.
10th Dec: Childhood schedule changes 2025 and 2026: information for healthcare practitioners doc updated to account for MMR. This is a VERY useful doc. Get it bookmarked ASAP!. It was amended again the day after to add a section about vaccination of children with current infection. This doc has also been produced: MMRV and febrile convulsions. Febrile convulsions are a common in children with a high fever, this guidance explains to parents and carers what a febrile convulsion is, and when to seek medical help.
12th Dec: Updated leaflet (make sure you give the right one) for children aged 18m - to include MMRV.
16th Dec: Pneumococcal infant vaccination: information for healthcare practitioners updated to account for PCV14 and PCV20. See this letter (Change of vaccine for the routine adult pneumococcal vaccination programme and individuals at increased clinical risk) for implementation advice and further information. The following day the PCV20 PGD template came out.
16th Dec: Immunisations: babies up to 13 months of age updated for MMRV. This booklet covers all immunisations for babies during their first year of life.
17th Dec: Hexavalent combination vaccine: information for healthcare practitioners document was updated to include new training slides for download and updates to the main guidance document to reflect the introduction of MMRV to the routine schedule for children from 1 January 2026. Also, the MMRV programme: information for healthcare practitioners has been updated ready for Jan. Also, a common query clarified, ‘What counts as a valid second dose of MMR-containing vaccine?’ Another one to check out and bookmark.
19th Dec: MMR PGD amended to: remove the recommendation to offer MMR to children in the selective catch up cohort who have immunity against chickenpox and require MMR protection; children born on or after 1 January 2020 should be offered the MMRV vaccine instead; clarify Varilrix and Varivax as the monovalent varicella vaccines in the appendix; and re-clarify in special considerations and additional information, which MMR containing vaccine should be offered based on date of birth.
19th Dec: Latest figures show strong uptake of whooping cough vaccine in pregnancy. And this data in the news item came from this report.
23rd Dec: Quarterly vaccination coverage statistics for children aged up to 5 years in the UK (COVER programme): July to September 2025 published. Do have a gander if relevant to your role (or even if not!). Spoiler alert: Most vaccine coverage has decreased, representing an ongoing decline in vaccine uptake. London is particularly worrying.
24th Dec: Vaccine update: issue 367, December 2025, Childhood schedule changes special is here.
TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS
4th Dec: Further to last month's news, it looks like the single dose Dengue vaccine 'Butantan-DV' is all set to be rolled out in Brazil from early 2026. Brazil experienced its largest ever dengue epidemic last year, with 6.4 million cases and 5,972 deaths. This could be a game changer!
4th Dec: If you were on my course last week, my prediction came true and the latest World Malaria Report arrived shortly after explaining all the results from the last one. I've updated my live course slides for those of you who have access. Sadly, there were an estimated 282 million malaria cases and 610 000 deaths in 2024 – roughly 9 million more cases than the previous year. 95% of them in Africa. In 2024, there were 610 000 malaria deaths. This corresponds to 13.8 malaria deaths per 100 000 population, more than 3 times the global target of 4.5 deaths per 100 000. Drug resistance is a big concern and progress for elimination is devastatingly off-track. Doesn't help that Global development assistance declined significantly from 2024 to 2025, largely due to reductions in funding from major contributors like the USA. And it makes me so sad that the impact of these setbacks is expected to fall disproportionately on children. However, the good news is that as of October 2025, 24 countries have introduced malaria vaccines into their routine immunisation programmes and there's hope for other prevention methods. Seasonal malaria chemoprevention has also been expanded and implemented in 20 countries (reaching 54 million children!).
4th Dec: Ohh exciting! First volunteer receives Lassa fever vaccine in cutting-edge Oxford trial. And also promising, Sabin Vaccine Institute’s Investigational Marburg Vaccine Delivered to Ethiopia for Outbreak Response
8th Dec: Awww Goodbye Chloroquine.
8th Dec: US Man Dies From Rabies After Receiving Infected Kidney. So sad that the thing that saved his life then went on to kill him.
Major milestone in development of Nipah virus vaccine
15th Dec: Worth having a good browse through the updated hepatitis A information for the public - check out the posters and information sheet...
Interesting journal reading this month:
Child health in international travel: A German airport survey.
Mpox vaccination: time for updated traveler recommendations? - It's a good point. We really need to remember who to refer to sexual health services for certain risk factors, travelling or not.
Learning to safely integrate generative artificial intelligence technology into travel medicine practice - really enjoying Gerrard Flahertys perspectives on AI
Chikungunya vaccination for travellers: practical guidance for clinical decision-making
Tick-borne encephalitis in international travellers: a systematic review and vaccine recommendations
Viable Schistosoma mansoni infection 41 years after last exposure—a case report of a loyal parasite
Timing is everything: navigating the challenges of untimely travellers in clinical practice
Complementing the case for standardised travel health competencies: a UK perspective - very glad that our excellent standardised resources have been highlighted here by some very prominent figures in our UK travel health circles. I did wonder at the time why they were not mentioned in the original piece this letter is referring to.
ADULT IMMUNISATION NEWS
5th Dec: RSV vaccination maternal programme update: Slide 34 revised to provide clearer information on RSV and influenza vaccinations given at the same appointment. This is what it says: "Abrysvo can be given concomitantly with inactivated influenza vaccine to pregnant women. While the administration of live attenuated influenza vaccine nasal spray (LAIV) to pregnant woman (including pregnant teenagers) is not recommended, in a situation where a pregnant teenager has recently inadvertently received LAIV, there are no safety or effectiveness concerns around giving Abrysvo® at any interval since having LAIV. Pregnant women who are eligible for COVID-19 vaccine during a seasonal vaccination campaign may receive this at the same time as Abrysvo".
16th Dec: See this letter: Change of vaccine for the routine adult pneumococcal vaccination programme and individuals at increased clinical risk for implementation advice and further information on PCV20. The following day the PCV20 PGD template came out.
18th Dec: 40.1% of all frontline healthcare workers have been vaccinated for influenza (437,874 of 1,091,164). This includes NHS trusts and GP practices. Read all about the other recent uptake data in these docs: Seasonal influenza vaccine uptake in GP patients and Seasonal influenza vaccine uptake in children of school age.
19th Dec: The Green Book chapter was updated today too to align with published guidance on occupational pertussis vaccination of healthcare workers. HCWs who have not received a pertussis-containing vaccine in the last 5 years and have regular contact with pregnant women or young infants (defined as those under 3 months of age) are prioritised for occupational vaccination (with Boostrix, ADACEL or REPEVAX). There are two priority groups which are outlined in more detail in the GB, and there is a document linked within the Green Book but unfortunately the link was broken when I tried it :-(
22nd Dec 2025; Shingles- General Practice Technical guidance updated to V4.
And...the global Malaria stats are in
282 million cases worldwide in 2024.
There were 579 000 malaria deaths in Africa in 2024, which accounted for 95% of malaria deaths globally. Three countries – Nigeria, (31.9%), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (11.7%) and the Niger (6.1%) – accounted for half of all deaths in Africa. Just over 75% of all deaths in the region are of children aged under 5 years.
There were 11.1 million cases in the Eastern Mediterranean regions.
The better news is that there was a huge decrease of 63.8% in malaria cases in the Americas, from 1.6 million to 573 000 cases.
More tools for the toolbelt
November 2025
UPDATES FOR ALL
4th November: Consent chapter updated in Green Book. Topical issue at the moment. I wrote my many conflicting thoughts down on consent last week.
6th Nov: Over 5 million under 65s with a long-term health condition could miss out flu vaccine. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is concerned that many people at risk may not know they are eligible for a flu vaccine.
6th Nov: WHO voices concerns about equitable access to novel TB vaccines
13th Nov: The risk of a Clade 1 import to the UK has moved from 'medium' to 'high'. Be on the look out. Would you know what to do if you suspected a case?
11th Nov: Fortunately, the 2025/26 flu vaccine is currently 70 to 75% effective at preventing hospital attendance in children aged 2 to 17 years and 30 to 40% effective in adults. This is encouraging since the rogue mutation in the summer where a drifted influenza A(H3N2) strain (also now known as subclade K) currently dominates cases in England. The protection levels observed in children are particularly encouraging this year. Have a read about it all in the blog by UKHSA: How well will I be protected from flu this year with the current UK influenza vaccines?
12th November: The 2025 WHO TB report is out and shows that TB remains one the deadliest infectious killers worldwide. In 2024, over 1.2 million people died from TB and 10.7 million were affected by it.
21st Nov: A cautionary tale: Scarborough woman given vaccine in 'wrong part' of shoulder
23rd November: HAPPY NURSING SUPPORT WORKERS DAY!! What would we do without your amazing skills :-). Hope you have been treated accordingly today :-)
24th Nov: not sure whether this should go in the travel section or the 'everybody' sections... so just leaving it here for now: COVID vaccine tech could help prevent muscle damage from snakebites
26th November: The latest Vaccine Update newsletter has landed. It's an informative read with some bite-sized summaries around the new MMRV programme (also the PGD's are out for that prog too, see links below). There are lots of data summaries in there regarding uptake and coverage on the vaccination programmes (I've added more details about this in the relevant portals), and reminders about the new routine programmes that were introduced this year for gonorrhoea and Mpox. if you are not subscribed to vaccine update, please do so to help with keeping up to date!
27th November: Well this is interesting: Of all frontline healthcare workers, 29.8% have been vaccinated for flu (285,622 of 958,296) up to now. This includes NHS trusts (secondary care) and GP practices (primary care). NHS trusts (secondary care) represent data from acute, ambulance, care, community, mental health, other NHS trusts and independent sector health care providers (ISHCPs). Broken down by primary and secondary care, the totals are 29.7% (282,046 of 949,918) for NHS trusts, and 42.7% (3,576 of 8,378) for GP practices. The over 65's are at 60.9%, at risk groups 28.5%, pregnant women 29.5%, 2 and 3 year olds are at 33% each. On the schools programmes, reception and year one are doing the best at 33% (as well) and it goes downhill from there with the lowest uptake (18.1%) being 15-16 year olds.
26th Nov: Valneva Announces Positive Final Phase 2 Results for Lyme Disease Vaccine Candidate
27th Nov: Why I am livid with the CDC. And why we cannot ignore the recent messaging from the US.
CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS
On Wednesday 3 December 2025, 14:00 – 15:15, the UKHSA hosted a webinar about the second phase of the planned changes to the routine childhood vaccination schedule which will be implemented from January 2026. This will include the introduction of a varicella (chickenpox) vaccination programme (MMRV) and a new routine vaccination appointment at 18 months of age. Health Professionals only. Sign up here.
The UKHSA stockholding of Vaxelis has depleted. Infanrix hexa is now the only DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB vaccine available to order by ImmForm.
6th Nov: Check out the new (very informative) slideset about the MMRV programme.
28th Nov: MMRV information for healthcare practitioners is here!
TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS
3rd Nov: Falsified rabies vaccine is circulating through unauthorised sources in India. What a thing to falsify!!! WHY??? The public health agencies in the four nations of the UK are conducting a look-back exercise to identify any travellers who reported receiving rabies vaccine following an animal bite in India from November 2023 onwards, to determine whether further rabies vaccination may be recommended. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the traveller's GP will be informed by public health agencies if additional vaccination is recommended. In Scotland any identified traveller will be referred to local assessment pathways for further assessment and management. Travellers who received pre-exposure rabies vaccine in India during this period should contact their GP or travel clinic for advice on whether more vaccine is required. Travellers in Scotland should call NHS24 on 111 or their local GP.
3rd Nov 2025: Qdenga Delivers 7 Years of Sustained Protection Against Infection and Hospitalisation.
NaTHNaCs next free webinar is 'Getting to grips with Oropouche virus disease', and will be on Friday 28 November 2025, 1pm.
10th Nov: Vector control has prevented over 1 billion malaria cases in Africa since 2000, new analysis reveals
12th Nov: South Africa making first new cholera vaccine in decades
13th Nov: Rift Valley fever vaccine safe, immune-producing in adults, early-stage trial shows
20th Nov: Keep an eye on cholera recs!! NaTHNaC has been busy reviewing the recommendations.
There is an ordering cap for Ixiaro for 10 doses per week from www.valneva.co.uk. This is likely to be in place until mid-January. Order carefully at the moment...
On 3 October 2025, the WHO published an update on the current global situation of chikungunya virus (CHIKV) disease. Between 1 January and 30 September 2025, a total of 445,271 suspected and confirmed cases of CHIKV (155 deaths) were reported globally. So far in 2025, the region of the Americas has reported the highest number of cases.
18th November: As reported in the BMJ: Marburg virus outbreak: Six deaths confirmed in Ethiopia. And just three days later, NaTHNaC have produced a factsheet to help with this challenging situation. Meanwhile there have also been three more deaths and 180 new cases of dengue in Sindh, Pakistan. PLUS an increase in Chik and Dengue in Cuba in the wake of Hurricane Melissa, along with a lack of clean water and medical supplies.
27th Nov: Speaking of Dengue- new vaccine? .... Brazil Becomes The First Country To Authorise A Single-Dose Dengue Vaccine: All You Need To Know. Here's another article about it: Brazil approves world's first single-dose dengue vaccine
ADULT IMMUNISATION NEWS
Nothing yet as we approach the end of November but check out this fancy new timeline that landed 20th November!!
October 2025
UPDATES FOR ALL
It begins...Good luck with your COVID and flu clinics ALL!
7th October: VERY topical on imms updates at the moment is this issue: Pharmacies facing angry patients over Covid jab confusion. Similar anecdotal reports are coming from GP surgeries too which I get to hear all about on the courses... Sounds like there is improved messaging as a consequence now about who is eligible. We certainly don't want to make anyone any angrier about vaccines!!
It's Diwali on 20th October! Time for a vaccine campaign so everyone stays well for it :-)
9th October: Amazing job everyone!!! You have vaccinated nearly a million more people against flu so far this autumn compared to last year.
15th October: Vaccine Update has landed!
20th Oct: A reminder of some useful public facing resources you can order for FREE for COVID-19 - leaflets and stickers.
24th October: Another Vaccine Update has landed containing lots of useful links and reminders around giving information to patients in accessible ways. With it comes a timely reminder that informed consent is a PROCESS and a multifaceted approach. They link to a useful site around the traveller community which I have added to the tools and hesitancy sections to avoid getting lots in the news feed.
23rd October: To date we have vaccinated over 10.4 million (10,436,395) against flu and almost three million (2,987,313) against COVID. Well done all!!
23rd October 2025: South Carolina, USA has confirmed 139 children have been quarantined following an outbreak of measles.
23rd October: Update to the Guidance for healthcare practitioners on the national influenza immunisation programme. New Common Issue added: Inadvertent administration of the recombinant inactivated influenza vaccine (IIVr) to a child under 18 years.
CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS
On Wednesday 3 December 2025, 14:00 – 15:15, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) Immunisation Team will be hosting a webinar about the second phase of the planned changes to the routine childhood vaccination schedule which will be implemented from January 2026. This will include the introduction of a varicella (chickenpox) vaccination programme (MMRV) and a new routine vaccination appointment at 18 months of age. Health Professionals only. Sign up here.
The UKHSA stockholding of Vaxelis has depleted. Infanrix hexa is now the only DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB vaccine available to order by ImmForm.
There are 2 RSV monoclonal antibody immunisations for young children licensed in the UK: nirsevimab and palivizumab. These are used on very and extremely preterm infants and high-risk children. A Red Book page to record RSV immunisation with a monoclonal antibody is now available to insert into babies’ red books (personal child health record). This is not specific to any particular product but details of the product used should be recorded. The page is available from Harlow Solutions and can be viewed on their website.
New childhood immunisations communications toolkit. To support stakeholders with their communications on the benefits of childhood vaccination, there is a new communications toolkit. It contains important messages, background information, specific back-to-school messaging, the childhood immunisations schedule, suggested copy for stakeholder publications and vaccine drives. It also contains information to help increase vaccine confidence and a Q&A which covers commonly asked questions relating to all childhood immunisations. Well worth a gander.
21st October: Data flowchart describing the BCG vaccination and severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) screening data flow process updated in line with procedural changes around SCID screening.
31st October 2025! VERY IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS relating to MMRV programme. AND here's the LETTER
TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS
Thank you to Michelle for pointing this article out. Mosquitoes that carry dengue and chikungunya found in England for first time.
Well this sounds promising... Phase 1 trial finds high dose of malaria monoclonal antibody is safe, elicits protection
1st October: Valneva reports good antibody persistence for chikungunya vaccine. Data from 254 healthy adults suggested that 95% retained an antibody response above the seroresponse threshold for 4 years after a single dose. Antibody persistence in adults age 65 and older was similar to that for younger adults
Content analysis of malaria-related health information published in online travel blogs: Worth noting!
7th Oct 2025: Babies take a lesson from soldiers in the war against malaria. Following the example of the US military, who often wear uniforms treated with insecticide to repel mosquitoes in malaria-endemic regions, a research team has tested a similar approach to try to protect young children in Uganda.
7th October 2025: West Nile death reported in California
13th Oct: Whooping cough in Florida, mpox in Spain, Maldives achieves public health first
17th October: NHS to roll out first long-acting HIV prevention injection to at-risk groups. This is good news, and a reminder that injectable alternatives have been an option for travellers living with HIV for a while, especially if going to countries where HIV medication may be frowned upon and stigmatised. Glad it's becoming a more mainstream and long term solution too.
17th October: Further to September's news about the malaria MABs here's a bit more... New Monoclonal Antibody Shows Promise for Preventing Malaria Infections.
19th October: Plantation worker dies of rabies in Bintulu, fifth fatal case in Sarawak in 2025
21st October: Typhoid conjugate vaccine highly effective in endemic settings, study finds
October 2025: This is a thought-provoking read: Mpox vaccination: time for updated traveler recommendations? The article makes a good point and is worth a read if you are a travel healther. There are likely significant limitations with the current traveler recommendations, which are primarily focused on sexual risk factors. Sex-centered indications for vaccination may (i) not fully account for the transmission dynamics of clade I mpox viruses, (ii) underestimate risk among travelers who are visiting friends and relatives (VFR), including children, and (iii) overestimate the effectiveness of clinic-based sexual history taking in identifying all vaccine eligible adults.
October 2025: Lovely Jane has written a very useful (and emotive) blog about carbon monoxide poisoning. Please do have a read!!
ADULT IMMUNISATION NEWS
2nd October: PGD template updated for dTaP/IPV. The changes are mostly aesthetic and branding/consistency or referencing related, but also note they have added facilities for management of anaphylaxis, syncope, and those living with HIV in cautions section as per SPCs. And there is an addition of a statement regarding absence of reliable history for routine immunisation in dose and frequency section. They have amended criteria for inclusion and doses and frequency sections stating pertussis outbreaks in nurseries/schools to contacts and cases as per the guidelines, and clarified the section for management of tetanus prone wounds. Also updated is the storage conditions as per SPCs and added signposting to accessible information in written information provided.
Private supply of Pneumovax 23 PFS is to be discontinued from October 2025.
21st October: The RSV guidance for health practitioners to protect pregnant women and older adults from RSV has been updated to clarify the wording about the administration of influenza vaccine co-administration for pregnant women. It now says: "Abrysvo can be given concomitantly with inactivated influenza vaccine to pregnant women. While the administration of live attenuated influenza vaccine nasal spray (LAIV) to pregnant woman (including pregnant teenagers) is not recommended, in a situation where a pregnant teenager has recently inadvertently received LAIV, there are no safety or effectiveness concerns around giving Abrysvo at any interval since having LAIV".
23rd October: Three unrelated cases of clade I mpox have been confirmed in California, USA. NOT travel related.
27th October: What is Mpox and why are cases rising in Europe?
September 2025
UPDATES FOR ALL
1st September: To start off September a Vaccine Update flu special has arrived. Good luck to the school nurses and staff providing maternity services on the commencement of the flu programme for those groups.
2nd September: The fabulous cheat sheet, 'a visual guide to vaccines' has been updated. Did you know that you can save some printing and order free full colour versions of this here?
3rd September: Useful new guidance has just appeared with loads of good tips for planning for flu uptake increases. Do have a browse! Flu vaccine for children: best practice guide for GPs: Guidance and Leaflet for GPs and practice staff to support the nasal spray flu vaccination programme for children. I've put it in the Influenza portal and the hesitancy and uptake section so it doesn't get lost in the news feed.
Also arrived 3rd Sept is an updated routine immunisation schedule poster (to account for the revised shingles eligibility). Time to replace those July versions already. I wonder when the RSV changes about the over 80 expansion will become policy? Probably as soon as we have laminated this latest version of the schedule...
4th September: NHS England has launched the staff flu vaccination campaign resources for 2025/26. They include a range of visuals, messaging, scripts, Q&As, a leaflet and top tips. A call to action letter was cascaded to system leaders to support improving staff flu vaccine uptake as a national priority. Together with UKHSA, a winter vaccination communications toolkit for stakeholders has also been published.
4th September: A bit morbid but very important to have a browse of. This has just been published: Measles: Historic confirmed cases, notifications and deaths. Being a bit of a goth, I scrolled first to the death toll stats and went back to notifications later. It's very interesting (and sad). We have had two deaths this year, one adult and one child and there were 5 deaths last year (3 of which were adults). I hovered over whether to put this in the childhood imms news section because technically it's a routine childhood immunisation (or should be), but I think it's probably most relevant here as it can affect anyone of any age and lots of adults have not had any doses. Have a browse of the age groups data, plenty of adult notifications are being reported. 2,911 cases confirmed last year across all ages. Keep going with those MMR jabs, whatever the age!! A reminder that the incomplete algorithm says "Two doses of MMR should be given irrespective of history of measles, mumps or rubella infection or age."
3rd September: Vaccine politics eh? Guardian article: More than 1,000 health workers urge Kennedy to quit over anti-vax policies. And this in the BBC might be of interest too: The Florida surgeon general who likens vaccine mandates to slavery.
5th September: COVID-19 vaccination: autumn programme resources- updated with information leaflet and sticker for the COVID-19 autumn vaccination programme.
9th September: COVID-19 Green Book chapter updated with latest ordering information. Also updated is the Information for parents of eligible at-risk children aged 6 months to 11 years on COVID-19 vaccination.
10th September: Just 1 in 4 Americans believe Trump administration vaccine shifts are based on science, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds
10th September: COVID-19 training collection updated to refer to the National Minimum Standards and Core Curriculum for Vaccination Training (NMS) which includes guidance on COVID-19 vaccination. The COVID training standards and related competencies have now been withdrawn on the back of the new NMS (same for flu) so refer to that from now on for all your immunisation training standards and comps. Also updated for the autumn programme: COVID-19 vaccination: information for healthcare practitioners. and....
11th September: NEW COVID POSTER ALERT!!!!
11th September: The NMC are reviewing The Code! Have your say here.
15th September: I just had a fabulous few days in London teaching some awesome HCA's to give injections and my first day there landed me at a conference (I got to have a a chat with Chris Witty too!!). The conference was recorded and all about health misinformation - it was fascinating. You will be able to watch the recording here - I promise you, it will be worth investing the time.
16th September: The COVID-19 national protocol is here! Also here is the COVID-19 PGD template. YAY we know what we are doing now. Legal mechanisms are all in-place for a busy Autumn booster campaign.
26th September: Time to get the laminator out again! Updated to include Shingles expansion: Vaccination of individuals with uncertain or incomplete immunisation.
CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS
Baby dies of whooping cough after mother not vaccinated while pregnant. Another poignant reminder of the importance of the maternal programme for young babies. Another baby whose mother was not vaccinated against whooping cough while pregnant has died after contracting the infection.
8th September: Could this be a sign of things to come? Priorix Tetra has got a UK license (MMRV vaccine)... Meanwhile, if you want to get ahead, here's the European licensing information for Proquad, the other (and most talked about so far) candidate for the childhood programme. No UK license as of yet though.
9th September: Had a lovely session today teaching a flu and COVID update and a helpful delegate recommended this Astrazeneca site for some useful resources around Fluenz. I'll be adding it in the resources page and flu portal shortly.
15th September: A few updated HPV-related documents: Consent forms, leaflet, record card and poster.
22nd September: Press release: The Department of Health and Social Care has launched a new national vaccination campaign, 'Stay Strong. Get Vaccinated', to protect newborn babies.
25th September: Quarterly vaccination coverage statistics for children aged up to 5 years in the UK (COVER programme) statistics are in (April to June 2025). Disappointing to see that ALL of the vaccine prorammes have had a decrease in uptake.
TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS
3rd September: Tunisia reports 2nd West Nile fever case since August.
4th September: Due to staff shortages the fantastic NaTHNaC advice line will be closed on Friday 5th September 9-11AM, Monday 8th September 1-2PM, and Tuesday 9th September 1-3PM. But, absence makes the heart grow fonder. We love you NaTHNaC!!
Intriguing research. Dengue antibody may block the spread of Zika virus in vulnerable areas of the body. A new study demonstrated that an antibody originally designed to fight dengue virus may also block the spread of Zika virus in vulnerable areas of the body - including the reproductive organs (what makes Zika especially dangerous is its ability to hide in protected areas of the body, including the brain, eyes and reproductive organs, where it can linger undetected). Great finding!!
Another article of interest: WHO approves spatial repellents for malaria control.
And another: 750 hospitalised with cholera, gastroenteritis in Pakistan.
4th September: Ebola outbreak kills 15 in DR Congo.
5th September: NHS website sees summer surge in bites and stings advice
Thank you to Jane Chiodini for pointing this poignant video out: Family of British woman who died from rabies speak out to warn others
6th September: Prague reports surge in hepatitis A cases as city faces worst outbreak since 2008. And take note of this article from back in June: UKHSA probes rise in hepatitis A cases
9th September: Ebola virus disease in DRC
10th September: Changes to country yellow fever certificate requirements
10th September: West Nile virus cases running higher than normal, prompting health warnings
16th September: How billions of hacked mosquitoes and a vaccine could beat the deadly dengue virus.
18th September: Shortage of 250mg mefloquine (Lariam) antimalarial tablets announced until January 2026
22nd September: Sad news. TRAVAX (and fit for travel) are no more :-(
23rd September: Positive stuff! Human monoclonal antibody MAM01 for protection against malaria in adults in the USA: a first-in-human, phase 1, dose-escalation, double-blind, placebo-controlled, adaptive trial. Thanks for sharing that with us Fray!
28th September: HAPPY WORLD RABIES DAY! And why is it world rabies day? 28th September also marks the anniversary of Louis Pasteur's death, the French chemist and microbiologist, who developed the first rabies vaccine. RIP Louis and thank you for starting us off on the journey to development of the fabulous rabies vaccines!
ADULT IMMUNISATION NEWS
2nd September: New shingles eligibility calculator and updated 'visual guide to vaccines' poster to account for the 18+ expansion. Both of which I have replaced screenshots of in the tools section. Also updated is this patient-facing information: Vaccination against shingles guide.
3rd September: Keep an eye on the older adult RSV guidance for changes - the Information for health care practitioners document has been updated and the related slideset to explain the over 80's expansion and what to do with those who are turning 80. To save you a trawl this is the summary of the advice on that so far (from the info for HCP's doc): When the older adult RSV programme was introduced in 2024, individuals turning 80 years of age during the first year of the programme were eligible for vaccination until 31 August 2025, to ensure they had sufficient opportunity to be vaccinated. The JCVI have recently published a statement recommending to government the expansion of the programme to all individuals over the age of 80. This is not yet policy and whilst this advice is under review, those individuals who turned 80 during the first year of the programme will remain eligible beyond 31 August 2025. Until there is policy confirmation, the vaccination of these individuals will not be covered by the RSV Patient Group Direction (PGD), and so a Patient Specific Direction (PSD) will need to be used in this situation. This applies to individuals with date of birth range 2 September 1944 to 31 August 1945 inclusive, who were aged 79 years on 1 September 2024 and had their 80th birthday within the first year of the RSV programme commencing. Individuals who have been eligible in the routine programme who turn 80 after 1 September 2025 and have not yet been vaccinated currently remain eligible.
5th September: Updated shingles eligibility posters. Posters updated to reflect the expansion of the Shingles programme from 01 September 2025 to all immunocompromised individuals from 18 years of age.
August 2025
UPDATES FOR ALL
1st August: To kick of August vaccine update has landed with some key summaries of the past present and future. Good to see mentions of travel heath in there, in particular rabies post-exposure vaccines. So many clinical staff do not realise that post exposures should be dealt with via the GP (years of being a private clinic nurse taught me this having seen a LOT of people who had been turned away from their surgery.) Glad it is getting a bit of a spotlioght at the moment.
1st August: Technically this happened on 31st July but so it doesn't get lost below, a workbook appeared alongside the NMS as an appendix which is great, but there have been one or two access issues. Luckily, I had downloaded it before access got restricted and I have saved a copy HERE. Hopefully it will be sorted out before we know it.
Note: Health Publications is moving to a new site around the end of August 2025. The new site will be named Find Public Health Resources, You'll still be able to order free resources. The new service aims to be more accessible and easier to navigate. Can't wait to see it!
...AND HERE IT IS! If your account was created before 16 July 2025, you must reset your password to access your account. Accounts created on or after that date will require a new sign up.
21st August: The flu poster (everyone's favourite poster!!) for this year has finally landed!
27th August: RSV programme: information for healthcare professionals updated. Older adults guidance and slide set updated to version 3.5 with interim guidance for the 80+ age group expansion. NOTE THIS PART as we approach 31st Aug: "The JCVI have recently published a statement recommending to government the expansion of the programme to all individuals over the age of 80. This is not yet policy and whilst this advice is under review, those individuals who turned 80 during the first year of the programme will remain eligible beyond 31 August 2025. Until there is policy confirmation, the vaccination of these individuals will not be covered by the RSV Patient Group Direction (PGD), and so a Patient Specific Direction (PSD) will need to be used in this situation."
28th August: Ooooh look what's been updated! Just in time for all my imms updates next week. COVID-19: the green book chapter.
28th August: RSV maternal vaccination coverage in England has been updated. Spoiler alert!: Of the 37,328 women reported as having given birth in the survey month, 20,173 (54.0%) had received an RSV vaccine. Read all about the difficulties with equity between different groups in the report. Also just in is the RSV older adults vaccination coverage in England report. The main highlight is that the RSV vaccination programme for the older adults catch-up cohort aged 75 to 79 before 1 September 2024 achieved a cumulative coverage rate of 63.4%.
CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS
MenB information for healthcare practitioners for infants updated to add guidance on incorrect intervals between doses.
8th August: New addition of an addendum to the LAIV PGD. Why? Well, since the publication of the PGD, the SPC went through an update on 21 July 2025 to the ‘Qualitative and quantitative composition’ section with the formula of the active strains. The updated SPC was published on the EMC on 23 July 2025. The addendum has been provided to the PGD to inform of the updated active strains. Nothing major to worry about there.
19th August: New leaflet! Why is my baby being offered an RSV immunisation?: This leaflet is for parents of premature babies who are offered Nirservimab to help protect their baby against RSV.
27th August: Updates to the meningococcal C immunisation programme page: updated Information for HCPs and slidesets to account for removal of men C vaccine in infancy and to change some of the branding to UKHSA instead of PHE.
28th August: Well worth a gander here: Cover of vaccination evaluated rapidly (COVER) programme: annual data
England annual data on coverage achieved by the childhood immunisation programme and here. Just updated today with most recent stats. UKHSA and NHS England are now calling for parents and healthcare workers to catch up on children’s missed vaccinations as schools start the autumn term. The Guardian had some things to say about the uptake data too: Vaccine warning for England as one in five children start school unprotected.
29th August: Well I , like many other nurses, woke up today to find a flurry of 'varicella-from-Jan 26' themed news headlines and a media frenzy in response to a government press release. Still important to be aware that we don't have exact details on how this will be implemented but from my multiple whatsapp messages this morning I can see a lot of staff are feeling confused and asking 'did I miss something?'. As far as I can see, we didn't. If you haven't done so already, refer to all the linked info in the varicella portal for JVCI discussions and government thoughts on the matter to get a bit of an insight into where we are at. I'll be keeping a close eye on any new documents coming through and will post them here and on the portals when anything arrives. Here are some of the national news headlines from today in the meantime: BBC, Guardian, Inews.
TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS
BBC NEWS ARTICLE: Their children can't eat, speak or walk - so forgotten Zika mothers raise them together
7th August: FDA tightens label of Valneva's chikungunya vaccine, lifts pause in older adults
13th August: Global UNVEIL Initiative Launches to Fast Track Lassa fever Vaccine Development
14th August: Update to this page: Guidance, Rabies and Immunoglobulin Service (RIgS). Did you know? In 2024 there were 4,743 calls related to rabies prophylaxis or post-exposure treatment.
14th August: Travel-associated infections in England, Wales and Northern Ireland statistics updated. The current report includes information on the trends of chikungunya, cholera, dengue, rickettsial infections and Zika virus disease between January and June 2025. An infection summary and key findings are provided for Japanese encephalitis, Oropouche virus diseaseand yellow fever. Quick summary: The report showed an increase in chikungunya with a total of 73 cases reported between January and June 2025 compared with 27 cases for the same period in 2024. Oropouche was reported for the first time in EWNI. The three imported cases were all linked to travel to Brazil. Reports of dengue and Zika virus disease in EWNI were lower in the first six months of 2025 compared with the same period in 2024. Eight travel-associated cholera cases were reported, compared with one case for the same period in 2024.
14th August: News Article from UKHSA (probably prompted by the above news): Rise in chikungunya cases in UK travellers returning from abroad. There were over 70 cases of chikungunya in the first six months of this year. This is more than double the number of cases compared to the same period in 2024. And while we are on Chikungunya - check out the enticing title of this article.... China deploys ‘cannibal’ mosquitoes and killer fish to fight chikungunya.
Government turns to TikTokers to advise on cosmetic surgery abroad
Drug turns human blood into a mosquito killer. "A drug that makes human blood lethal to mosquitoes also acts as a potent contact insecticide absorbed through the feet, providing a promising new approach to combating insecticide resistance."
Sudan cholera outbreak kills 40 in a week as health centres overwhelmed
August 20th marks World Mosquito Day, recognising the discovery of mosquitoes as vectors of malaria in 1897. And coincidentally, I'm off to Italy today with the kids. Trying not to worry too much about the increase in West Nile Virus cases in Italy that we keep hearing about... DEET at the ready!
24th August: West Nile Virus: New York City reports first human cases of 2025; Symptoms and risk factors for the disease
25th August: Valneva Announces FDA’s Decision to Suspend License of Chikungunya Vaccine IXCHIQ In the U.S. Ominous news?...
26th August: A reminder about why we discuss water safety in our consultations: WHO report: 1 in 4 people globally still lack access to safe drinking water.
26th August: Climate variability may speed up the spread of vector-borne diseases
28th August: Just received news from lovely Jo at Valneva that there's a whole host of wonderful resources to download here should you need them. I urge you to check them out :-). You will find useful clinic checklists, vaccine record books, leaflets, posters, clinic support packs... and more. I will also be adding this to my resources page so it doesn't get lost in the newsfeed.
ADULT IMMUNISATION NEWS
4th August: Press release: NHS begins rollout of world-first gonorrhoea vaccine programme. The 4CMenB vaccine will help shield those most at risk of gonorrhoea — potentially averting up to 100,000 cases of the disease
14th August: Update to the Shingles vaccination: guidance for healthcare practitioners: This guidance has been updated due to expansion of the programme to include immunosuppressed individuals aged 18 years and over. The content has been reviewed, reorganised and updated to align with the revised Green Book chapter.
19th August: The Green Book chapter for Shingles has been updated to account for the expansions in the programme. From 1st September around 300,000 people in England will become eligible for a shingles vaccination once it is available to people aged 18 to 49 who have a severely weakened immune system.
27th August: RSV programme: information for healthcare professionals updated. Older adults guidance and slide set updated to version 3.5 with interim guidance for the 80+ age group expansion.
28th August: GO SHINGRIX!! (again): Shingles jab may reduce risk of heart attack, pioneering research reveals
28th August: Just published: Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV): coverage report, England, April 2024 to March 2025. Highlights: Coverage in those aged 65 and over was 73.6%. Worryingly, uptake was 15.4% in those aged 65. but did increase with age to 85.6% in those aged 75 and over. coverage in those aged 2 to 64 in one or more clinical risk group was 47.5%. Coverage in clinical risk groups ranged from 39.0% (chronic liver disease) to 70.0% (cochlear implants).
July 2025
UPDATES FOR ALL
3rd July: The NHS ten-year plan is here. Obviously my first thoughts were 'what does this mean for vaccination?' Community vaccine hubs maybe? More digital resources for inviting people in and checking eligibility? Full AI integration? More health visitors vaccinating? Home visits for vaccines? ... the possibilities are endless BUT success depends on workforce growth, public trust, and integrating services effectively. I am also wondering how this applies to staff education too. IF well-executed, this vision could reverse current vaccine slumps and strengthen the UK’s immunisation infrastructure. Watch this space I guess... and look at this for starters: Health visitors to play integral role in improving childhood vaccinations uptake
9th July: Vaccine safety and adverse events following immunisation: the green book, chapter 8- UPDATED to advise on the availability of oxygen and emphasis on space required for resuscitation.
11th July: Interesting article: Vaccine roll-outs cut deaths by 60%
13th July: Terrible news :-( Child dies as measles cases surge at Liverpool hospital
14th July: RSV Green Book chapter updated to include nirsevimab selective immunisation programme information. Updates to older adult adverse reactions section, older adult coadministration, and on recent efficacy and disease burden evidence.
16th July: Departmental minute on the COVID-19 autumn 2025 vaccination programme published AND 26/27 advice is here!
16th July: Want a heads up on future changes? Take a look at the JCVI minutes from June that have just been published. I'll update the vaccine portals relating to each vaccine discussion in there accordingly. Bit more info on chicken pox vaccines now and there's talk of norovirus vaccines, UTI vaccines, metapneumovirus vaccines, Group A & B strep vaccines, higher valency pnumococcal vaccines and much more... exciting horizons! I'll add some more articles at the bottom of the vaccine portal page for interest.
17th July 2025: Really useful blog: Understanding the risks and management of rabies exposure for UK travellers
18th July: Neffy is finally here! (remember me saying what a cute name it was last year?). MHRA approves adrenaline nasal spray - the first needle-free emergency treatment for anaphylaxis in the UK
21st July 2025: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) programme: information for healthcare professionals updated. Changes made: Older Adults guidance updated with additional information on co-administration of vaccines and on Guillain-Barré syndrome. Maternal guidance updated with guidance on monoclonal antibody immunisation for high-risk infants.
22nd July 2025: Oh no! My favourite post-exposure patient has died. RIP Ozzy. (at least it wasn't rabies that got him). Did Ozzy Osbourne really bite the head off a live bat?
21st July - Check out this webinar: UKHSA, NHS England and Department of Health & Social Care Webinar: Communicating vaccines. Added to the hesitancy portal so it doesn't get lost in the news feed. Lots of marketing plans and tips in there from the UKHSA. Worth a watch.
28th July: Inactivated influenza vaccine: The national protocol is here! And more flu updates as there has been an amendment to the national flu immunisation programme 2025 to 2026 letter to include pharmacy provision.
28th July: Phlebotomy update!! What do you think about phlebotomy robots?
31st July 2025: News story from UKHSA: Latest data shows measles cases remain high
31st July 2025: Corporate report: UKHSA Immunisation Equity Strategy: commitments for 2025 to 2030
31st July: Oooh this is fun! World-first library of vaccine-enhancing adjuvants launches.
CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS
Well what a start to July eh? A new vaccine programme with some significant changes. I hope it goes well for you in this first month. I have just been reading the latest Vaccine Update special and I think that's a good thing to have to hand - a lot has changed lately and it forms a useful checklist and reference list for all we need to know about the new programme schedule. Also note this timely article that appeared 1st July: Parents face hurdles vaccinating children - report.
10th July: The updated NHS parental attitudes report has arrived. This indicates that healthcare professionals are still one of the most trusted sources of information for parents (midwives and health visitors in particular!). Vaccine hesitant healthcare professionals hence should be very mindful of their codes of conduct. The NMC updated their 'freedom of expression' guidance in December 2023. take a look... They also have a stance on using social media responsibly which was also updated in December 2023.
19th July: New jab protects babies from serious lung infection: They found a 72% reduction in babies hospitalised with the virus if mothers were vaccinated. Great spot Fray! And then...
23rd July 2025: Thousands of premature babies to receive new injection against RSV
24th July: Update to adolescent vaccination programme in secondary schools for 2025 to 2026: Information on the adolescent vaccination programme delivered in secondary schools and the role that schools play. AND Flu vaccination programme 2025 to 2026: briefing for primary schools
TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS
Good news to kick off July from Suriname for achieving malaria free status!!
2nd July: Have you ever heard of vampiricides? Me neither until today. Sounds a bit horror-film-ish doesn't it? But it's real as described in this fascinating article: Vampire bats’ mutual grooming helps spread innovative rabies vaccine: A gel that bats lick off one another’s fur could help prevent rabies outbreaks in cattle, a growing problem in Latin America
9th July: IMPORTANT FOR TRAVEL HEALTHERS!! All updates to the travel health websites: TRAVAX and Fit for Travel have been paused due to low resources. If you are a TRAVAX user, revert to NaTHNaC for now to be on the safe side.
9th July: First mRNA vaccine for Marburg shows promise in animal trial. And another bit of good news in travel health world: First malaria treatment for babies approved for use
10th July: Perhaps too close to home to be considered travel health, but this (in Liverpool) is about a disease we commonly associate with travel: Two children from same primary school die
16th July: Nipah vaccines set to enter human trials
24th July: West Nile virus reaches UK shores: should we be worried?
25th July: NaTHNAC have updated their news and now CHIK has made it's way to the vaccine recommendation lists. Also note this new information about chikungunya risk assessment.
29th July: Ebola and Marburg: returning workers scheme (RWS) updated: Removed reference to clade I mpox as that is no longer a HCID.
29th July: Marburg virus disease: origins, reservoirs, transmission and guidelines updated current accepted acronym from MVD (Marburg virus disease) to MARD (Marburg disease)
30th July: WHO warns of global chikungunya threat as outbreak grows
31st July: UKHSA reminds public to stay tick aware this summer: The latest annual report on common animal-associated infections shows more than 1,500 cases of Lyme disease in 2024.
31st July: Polio: Public Health Emergency of International Concern: An update in the 42nd EC Statement, countries with a change in polio status since the last EC meeting (which may mean a change to polio vaccination recommendation) are Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Israel, Mali, Mozambique, Papua New Guinea and Tanzania. See polio vaccination recommendations and certificate information on the individual Country Information pages for those who plan to travel to these countries.
ADULT VACCINE NEWS
7th July: New Covid strain spreads across UK with unique symptom. The XFG and XFG.3 variants currently account for around 30 percent of Covid-19 cases in England. Feeling hoarse? Could it be stratus?...
8th July: After receiving the news of a new PGD, and more updates to the gonorrhoea programme I finally did it- I shifted all the gonorrhoea info out of the meningococcal portal and made a new gonorrhoea portal.
10th July: Look what Wales are doing! Expansion of shingles immunisation for severely immunosuppressed people aged 18 to 49. I wonder if England will follow suit?
22nd July: And here we go with following Wales...Expansion of Shingrix® vaccine eligibility to all those who are severely immunosuppressed and aged 18 years and over letter
28th July: Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine for GBMSM: PGD template updated and the other template has also been updated.
June 2025
Hello June. Hello to the little strawberries that are starting to appear and the tops of the carrots.
I'm doing a bit of a re-jig and reflecting on what I am doing with my life - I will be playing around with different layouts until I get it right! Let me know what you think!
June will be a busy month for us vaccinators! Make sure you have allocated plenty of time to read through all the new guidance that is coming through in preparation for the July changes. There will be new PGDs to sign, Green book chapters to read, new posters to save, and a whole host of new guidance and patient materials to keep abreast of.
2nd June: Someone must have been very busy in the UKHSA IT department this weekend because today I got a record number of email updates about various guidance. Deep Breath.... firstly, this will be a very useful newly-published document to digest "Childhood schedule changes from 1 July 2025: information for healthcare practitioners". It includes information on the changes, eligibility, scheduling and vaccine administration. But most importantly, the rationales behind everything. I always find that knowing the 'why' helps remember the 'what'. Related to this, this guidance also got an update: "Hexavalent DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB combination vaccine: information for healthcare practitioners". As did this page (Hexavalent combination vaccine: programme guidance) in general. Another related document to get an update today is the Hepatitis B vaccine for at-risk infants aide memoire. The Pneumococcal vaccination: information for healthcare practitioners document has also been updated and some slide sets have been removed relating to this programme, and the meningococcal one, presumably due to the vaccine swaps between these two on the schedule and the discontinuation of menitorix. The Polio Green Book chapter has been updated today as well, and I think this will be the first of many Green Book changes relating to the new schedules. Another important document that came in today is the 'Meningococcal B (MenB) vaccination against gonorrhoea guide'. and accompanying leaflet. PHEW! A whole lot of reading to do there- and probably much more to come... bring on the coffee!
2nd June: In between all the government emails I found an interesting article on the norovirus vaccine: Vomit-proof: how close are we to a norovirus vaccine? An oral vaccine shows early promise in preventing infection and limiting norovirus transmission. And another nice glimmer of positivity from Egypt who are the first country in Africa to get Hep B under control!
3rd June: Just as I thought I had met a record (yesterday) for 'number-of-government-emails-in-my-inbox-on-one-day', today, I reached a new high of 19 emails. Today's childhood schedule-related updates - the Visual Guide to Vaccines poster has been updated. The routine childhood schedule posters have been updated. The complete routine immunisation schedule poster has had an update ready for July. The childhood immunisation: quick guide for parents of premature babies leaflet was updated. The algorithm for catch ups and incomplete immunisation status was also updated in prep for July. The Green Book Tetanus chapter has had an update. Some more Green Book chapter updates came later in the afternoon: Hib, Hep B, Diphtheria, and chapter 11. Some PGD template updates also arrived; Hib/MenC, PCV, MenACWY risk groups, Hexavalent vaccine DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB, MenB, Hep B, and MenACWY. The chair of the JCVI has changed (to professor Wei Shen Lim KBE). AND... finally (I'm writing this at 2355 so hoping that's it for the 3rd June) the webinar link arrived for the 11th June. If you haven't signed up already for that, please do (info linked below under 'upcoming conferences'). You will get access to the recordings if you can't make it on the day but you HAVE TO REGISTER to be emailed that info. Large cup of coffee at the ready!!!
4th June: Easily missed among all the other government messages lately, but please note the contact number has changed for the rabies immunoglobulin service.
5th June: Travel Healthers!: The RCPSG Good Practice Guidance location has changed on the website if you were wondering where it's gone, scroll RIGHT down.
6th June: MenACWY programme: information for healthcare professionals updated along with a fresh new set of slides. The MenB equivalent has also been updated today to align with the changes to the childhood immunisation schedule from 1 July 2025 (moving second MenB dose to 12 weeks from 16 weeks). And the flu 'vaccines marketed in the UK' posters have been updated for 25/26. Also check out the new booklet for immunisations for babies up to 13 months of age.
TIP: Check out the new eligibility checker that I've added to the tools section. Also find it linked in the "Guidance for healthcare practitioners on the routine childhood schedule changes from 1 July 2025."
6th June: More documents updated: The leaflet for vaccinations for kids under one and a new one about the 18 month visit (with a very cute kid on the front!). I've also linked to these in the consultation tools section of the site with details for how to order them.
And sadly Sierra Leone battles intense mpox activity as Ethiopia reports first death. As of May, the number of lab-confirmed cases (17,845) has nearly reached the total reported for all of 2024. Test positivity is as high as 100% in seven of the country’s districts. Ethiopia confirmed its first mpox cases in late May, and last week the total rose sharply, to 40 cases, 17 of them confirmed. The death was an infant and linked with clade 1b.
9th June: Meningococcal B: vaccine information for healthcare professionals updated today. Also today, Chikungunya vaccine (IXCHIQ) temporarily paused in people aged 65 and over as precautionary measure while the MHRA conducts a safety review.
10th June: The Pertussis Green Book chapter has been updated to reflect all these imms changes on the childhood programme. And a leaflet for MMR for all: general leaflet update.
11th June: Pre-school vaccinations: guide to vaccinations from 2 to 5 years updated. and a revision of the smallpox/mpox Green book chapter (29).
11th June: NEW GREEN BOOK CHAPTER ALERT!!!!! Green Book chapter for gonorrhoea. I think I might make a gonorrhoea portal... hmmmm? DO I? Or should I keep it under meningococcal....? Message me if you have a strong opinion on this ....
A little bit of positive reflection on all these changes to documents: I think it's been quite useful to have a reminder of all the things that are out there to help us with the imms programmes. Been a good reminder!!
12th June: a new Green Book chapter for meningococcal has been published alongside the current one in anticipation of next month.
12th June: Oh dear!! RFK Jr announces new panel of vaccine advisers after firing entire previous team: Among the names announced by the US health secretary are several who have expressed anti-vaccine views. But don't worry, he says they are 'all committed to common sense'. Hmm we can envisage how this one will go...
...but on a more positive note, I also spotted this good news today: Novel Lyme Disease Vaccine Effective Across All Ages.
13th June: A letter has arrived! Introduction of new routine mpox and 4CMenB for gonorrhoea vaccination programmes letter. This letter provides the information required to implement the expanded pre-exposure mpox and new 4CMenB for gonorrhoea vaccination programmes primarily targeting GBMSM in sexual health services. There will be a rolling start from 1 August 2025, with all providers offering vaccinations by 1 September 2025.
13th June: An update to the Pneumococcal Green Book chapter. Later on came an update to the Hepatitis B: antenatal screening and selective neonatal immunisation pathway which is important guidance on the delivery of antenatal screening and selective neonatal immunisation services for pregnant women living with hepatitis B and their babies. The changes, as with everything lately, relate to the changes to the childhood immunisation schedule for children who turn 12 months old on or after 1 July 2025.
16th June: Rotavirus PGD reviewed and amended to update governance requirements for sections 2 and 7, add pharmacy technicians in Section 3, add dietitians, podiatrists, and occupational therapists, update expert panel, include sensitivity to phenylalanine statement in the cautions section, add excipients with known effects, phenylalanine, glucose and sucrose in the formulation section, update disposal guidance, update written information to include accessible information.
16th June: Useful leaflet!! Changes to the childhood vaccination programme: why are they happening. This flyer explains the changes to the childhood vaccination programmes from 1 July 2025 to parents of eligible children.
17th June: Here is the link to the UKHSA webinar recording (and other useful resources) around the childhood vaccine changes if you missed it! Definitely worth a watch.
18th June: So sad, and so avoidable. A Yorkshire lady has died of rabies after a holiday in Morocco and an unfortunate and seemingly benign run in with a puppy. This NaTHNaC factsheet comes at a good time: Worldwide rabies risk reminder
18th June: NEW!!! National Minimum Standards for Immunisers revamped and combined. Can also be found here. Important news in immunisation world!! I've linked to it here as well so it doesn't get lost. Worth a VERY CAREFUL read.
20th June: News story from the UKHSA: Uneven HPV uptake in some areas increases cervical cancer risk
20th June: Meningococcal B (MenB) vaccination programme for Gonorrhoea updated - Added ‘Introduction of new routine mpox and 4CMenB for gonorrhoea vaccination programmes letter’. Also updated is the mpox guidance page.
23rd June: Information updated about the meningococcal B (MenB) vaccine and paracetamol use. Updated to reflect the change in timing of MenB doses to 8 and 12 weeks of age in line with the changes to the routine childhood immunisation programme from 1 July 2025
23rd June: MORE rabies in BBC news.... Rare rabies-like virus found in island bat on the on the Isle of Wight.
23rd June: NEW!! This is another interesting new publication - check it out! Quality criteria for an effective immunisation programme: This publication defines the key elements for the implementation and delivery of a safe, equitable, high quality, effective and efficient immunisation service. I've linked to it here as well so it doesn't get lost.
25th June 2025: Vaccine update has landed with an Mpox and MenB special - LOADS of useful resources. If you are working in sexual health have a good browse.
25th June: BBC article: Millions of children at risk as vaccine uptake stalls. Speaking of which, today the leaflet has been update with ordering information for the leaflet: "13 months of age: A guide to immunisation up to For babies born on or after the 1 July 2024"
26th June: Rather depressing article: RFK Jr will be ‘personally responsible’ for children’s deaths by halting vaccine alliance funding, experts say
27th June: Interim recommendations for the use of human rabies immunoglobulin were issued. These recommendations supersede guidance on the use of rabies immunoglobulin within the UKHSA guidelines on managing rabies post-exposure treatment. The current guidance on use of rabies vaccine for post-exposure treatment remain the same. It seems the recent UK death has prompted a bit of a surge in inquiries for PET so the RIG will have to be managed tightly.
30th June: Also in tropical medicine news: Expect some disruption to supply of Stamaril. Sanofi has advised NaTHNaC that there will be a disruption in supply of the yellow fever vaccine Stamaril in the UK. The vaccine is expected to be out of stock for 2-3 weeks.
May 2025
Hello May. Hello Rhododendrons and long sunnier days....
Well, May is off with a bang having got quite a few pieces of information regarding upcoming vaccine changes on the last day of April (scroll down through April if not seen already). And here is another bit of big news - a SECOND chikungunya vaccine has been approved by MHRA: See: Vimkunya vaccine approved to prevent disease caused by the chikungunya virus in people 12 years of age and older. Lovely news, and roll on Zika vaccines next I hope .....
1st May: COVID-19 vaccination: spring 2025 campaign resources updated. Seems to be mainly with links to translated versions of the information.
2nd May: Finally something to add to the Anthrax portal (sadly). Involves a dead cow and a dead man... Thailand reports first anthrax death in decades. Health authorities race to track hundreds of people who may have been exposed to the deadly bacteria
2nd May: Brave lad!! He let snakes bite him some 200 times to create a better snakebite antivenom
7th May: Announcement from Valneva following an EMA announcement on use of IXCHIQ in the older age groups. EMA has suspended the use of the vaccine for individuals over 65 years old but has maintained current recommendations for IXCHIQ for people from 12 to 64 years of age.
7th May: I was wondering what the latest was on the combined flu and COVID vaccine, and then Fray very kindly sent me this: Moderna's combo Covid and flu mRNA shot outperforms current vaccines in large trial
8th May: 250% increase in scorpion stings in Brazil! 1.1 million stings reported between 2014 and 2023. Provisional data suggests scorpions were responsible for nearly 200,000 stings and 133 deaths in Brazil in 2024. Eek. This is why I always shake out my shoes before putting them on when I'm on holiday. Also in the guardian today was this sad CDC info: Child deaths from flu in the US are at their highest level in 15 years with at least 216 children dying during this past season. And over in the Telegraph, climate change strikes again and schistosomiasis has made headlines from it's presence in Europe: Rare and deadly disease carried by African snails hits Europe. Is anything a 'tropical' disease anymore? Climate change may see to that.... And one more from the 8th May, I'll let the headline speak for itself: Spike in avian flu cases in cats triggers worry about human spillover
8th May: Interesting article: Vaccine Hesitancy Isn’t Just About Misinformation
9th May: Seems topical after yesterday's news. Why not try this that just appeared on Medscape?: Fast Five Quiz: Are You Prepared to Confront Spider Bites?
13th May: First all-oral treatment for rhodesiense sleeping sickness now available and being used to treat patients in endemic countries in Africa
13th May: New study offers insights into designing safe, effective nasal vaccines. Mice took one for the team again for this one.
14th May: Worth a read of NaTHNaC's perspective on the recent adverse events data around the chikungunya vaccine...
And while we are on the topic travel health, a recently published study found that a new water-soluble formulation of the only drug available to treat schistosomiasis, can achieve the same effect as the currently available tablet form at half the usual dose. Praziquantel is currently available as large tablets that are bitter and difficult to swallow, especially for kids and pets. The new formulation can be dissolved in water and was shown to be more efficiently absorbed, enabling recipients to receive a smaller dose without sacrificing efficacy. Further clinical testing is needed before the new formulation can be brought to market, but if it continues to demonstrate success, the new formulation could be a game-changer in addressing helminths, which affect 400 million people worldwide.
15th May: If you want to learn more about the pipeline for COVID-19 vaccines and hear a REALLY GOOD explanation of all the different platforms and how to handle explaining this to the public then THIS IS THE (recording of a) WEBINAR FOR YOU! I really enjoyed it.
15th May: Two HIV vaccine trials show proof of concept for pathway to broadly neutralizing antibodies
16th May: WHO declares polio outbreak in Papua New Guinea. Looks like there will be an "immediate" vaccination campaign after positive samples were found in two healthy children during a routine screening in Lae. Shocking to learn that less than half of the country's population are immunised against polio. Let's keep our fingers crossed that a campaign gets underway ASAP and is successful.
19th May: This is a very useful handbook that has just been updated today: UK Health Security Agency's immunoglobulin handbook. Also find it in the consultation tools section of this site.
19th May: Interesting read published today: Why Is Oropouche Spreading so Fast?
20th May: Updated today- flu vaccination: letter template for children aged 2 and 3 years. GP practices can use this template to invite parents and guardians to get their child vaccinated at the local surgery. Also, the COVID-19 vaccination resources have been updated with accessible information for eligible individuals.
21st May: First detection of West Nile virus in UK mosquitoes: UKHSA says there is no evidence to suggest ongoing circulation of the virus in birds or mosquitos in the UK and the risk to the public is "very low".
21st May: Important news, particularly for sexual health services with regards to routine mpox and gonorrhoea vaccination programmes. Individuals should be identified through sexual health services, using markers of high risk of infection, including a recent history of multiple sexual partners or recent bacterial sexually transmitted infection. Full details on the eligible cohorts for each programme will be made available in the mpox and (?new) gonorrhoea chapters of the Green Book (look out for that new chapter!). At the same appointment, patients will also be offered vaccinations for HPV, and hepatitis A and B. The NHSE bulletin says that providers can begin to start vaccinating eligible people from 1 August 2025 once they have contracts in place, staff are trained, and vaccines are in stock (available via ImmForm). And that all providers must be vaccinating by no later than 1 September 2025. This news made it onto the BBC today too.
DID YOU KNOW? Gonorrhoea is now the second most common bacterial STI in the UK. In 2023, more than 85,000 diagnoses were recorded in England — the highest number since records began in 1918. Research led by Imperial College London suggests the vaccination programme could prevent more than 100,000 cases over 10 years and save the NHS more than £7.9 million.
21st May: Two new polio cases have been confirmed in Pakistan. That makes a total of 10 cases so far for 2025.
21st May: NaTHNaC have produced a useful factsheet about travelling during Pride.
22nd May: UKHSA data released today shows the flu vaccine prevented 96,000 to 120,200 hospitalisations in England during last winter. Lot of uptake data trickling through too today- see the school vaccine uptake here, the frontline HCP data here, and the GP patients data here. On the whole, it seems pretty disappointing with most risk groups and eligible people down on last years uptake stats. Pregnant women seem to have done slightly better for uptake though on last year.
22nd May: Scientists propose novel way of treating mosquitoes for malaria. Does make sense to kill the parasite in the mosquito, rather than the mosquito...
26th May: Malawi battles mpox as cases of the infectious disease surge in Africa
28th May: WHO warns of “explosive” yellow fever outbreaks as disease spreads in Americas. At least 221 cases of yellow fever and 89 deaths have been detected so far this year.
29th May: One or two additions to the annual flu programme resources - take a look. Also - an update to the Green Book chapter: Updated information on co-administration, seasonal timing of vaccination, vaccine terminology (to future proof wording on quadrivalent and trivalent vaccines), disease surveillance, vaccine uptake, risk groups and occupational health section. Also, the UK Influenza annual epidemiological reports are in.
29th May: More resources - an updated slideset for the hexavalent programme. Will help with understanding the upcoming changes in the programme from July 2025.
29th May: RSV vaccine coverage report for older adults is in up to 30th April. As of 30 April 2025, the overall vaccine coverage in the catch-up cohorts (adults aged 75 to 79 before 1 September 2024) reached 61.8%, up from the 60.3% reported in the March 2025 report. It's growing! However, this report also highlights that coverage varies by nearly 18.7 percentage points between regions, 22.1 percentage points between the most and least deprived deciles, and approximately 43.9 percentage points between ethnicities. Perhaps this shows us where the focus should be moving forwards...
29th May: Intriguing title... we have been focusing on second doses of MMR moving earlier but what about first doses?... Earlier measles vaccine could help curb global outbreak.
30th May: To end the month, Vaccine Update is here! I like the mentions about digital equality. A good reflection point. Very little about some of the big changes coming up though. But the information about disseminating the changes to patients effectively and fairly is perhaps just as important as the changes themselves...
April 2025
Hello April :-) Hello to the lovely cherry blossom and magnolias
Well, we are a quarter through the year already? Can you believe it?
Since 25 March, 563,154 COVID-19 spring booster vaccinations have been booked since the national booking system opened. Individuals that need extra protection this year include those aged 75 and over (including those by 17 June 2025), older adult care home residents, and immunosuppressed individuals aged six months and over. As the programme begins this month I just want to wish you the best of luck with it. Norovirus still seems to be on the rampage and of course is also something that affects those vulnerable groups worse than anyone else. In the week ending 23 March, there were 903 hospital patients with norovirus – nearly two-thirds (62.3%) higher than the previous record for cases at this time of year (week ending 24 March 2024). But flu is settling down now at least.
2nd April: 11 needle-free vaccines that could transform global immunisation. Great spot Karen!
3rd April: Will We See a Bird Flu Vaccine Next Year? And another relevant article: Everything You Need to Know About Bird Flu
7th April: A debut in the world of mpox vaccination! Vaccination against mpox: information for healthcare practitioners published. This new guidance document is for health practitioners implementing the mpox vaccination programme to protect against MPVX. The chickenpox public health management guidance has also been updated today to reflect changes to health protection regulations.
9th April: Polio: guidance, vaccination, data and analysis: This page has been updated to include information on the global polio eradication programme, the UK National Authority for Containment, and environmental surveillance.
9th April: You know me, I love a cheat sheet!! Hepatitis B vaccine for at-risk infants aide memoire updated. Look no further for a summary of hepatitis B vaccine schedule, advice and guidance for pregnant women and new mothers.
And here's another one from 6th April: Notifiable diseases poster for registered medical practitioners (a poster listing notifiable diseases in humans, and how to report them).
9th April: Shigella vaccine progress - First vaccination given in phase 2 infant study of a tetravalent Shigella vaccine (S4V2) candidate. Shigellosis is the second leading cause of fatal diarrheal disease worldwide, strongly contributing to pediatric morbidity and mortality. It is estimated that up to 165 million infections are due to Shigella of which 62.3 million occur in children younger than five years. As Valneva puts it, developing an effective vaccine to prevent this deadly disease is a public health imperative for many areas of the world.
10th April: Pertussis epidemiology in England 2024 and 2025 reports updated: Find the number of laboratory confirmed cases of pertussis in England in 2024 and 2025 here.
10th April: Statement of the forty-first meeting of the Polio IHR Emergency Committee report is out
10th April: Information for pilgrims planning to perform Hajj or Umrah in 2025 added on Travel Health Pro. Also related is this one: Mass gatherings: Travel advice for anyone planning to attend a mass gatherings event and of course the Hajj and Umrah factsheet.
11th April: NaTHNaC were on it because the day after the above publication, the WHO highlighted 17 confirmed cases from multiple countries of invasive meningococcal disease linked with travel to Saudi Arabia for religious pilgrimage. Initial reports from the KSA highlighted 11 cases in unvaccinated pilgrims who performed Umrah in the KSA between 7 January and 18 March 2025. A further six cases were reported to the WHO in pilgrims recently returned from Umrah, with two of the six confirmed as serogroup W. NaTHNaC have reported on this here. Quite shocking to learn that As of 10 March 2025, the KSA authorities estimate that only 54% of international Umrah pilgrims had complied with meningococcal vaccination requirements.
15th April: Mammothpox!! I had to do a double take when I saw this headline! WHO tests pandemic response with Arctic ‘mammothpox’ outbreak. An interesting simulation regarding pandemic responsiveness.
16th April: Sabin Begins Marburg Vaccine Trial in U.S.
19th April: I have now added a Chikungunya page to the vaccine portal. Looking out for the Green Book chapter which I hope we will see this year!
22nd April: Universal nasal flu vaccine? This was an intriguing news snippet from CIDRAP: New agreement geared toward universal avian flu vaccine.
23rd April: So terribly sad. Pakistan gunmen kill two police guarding polio vaccinators. But the campaign continues after 7 more childhood cases of polio are reported in Pakistan. Pakistan is not doing terribly well with TB either according to this headline: Pakistan has 5th largest TB caseload in world. Air quality isn't great there either.
23 April: The WHO issued a product alert about falsified HEALMOXY (Amoxicillin) 500mg capsules identified in WHO African Region. These falsified products have been identified in both Cameroon and Central African Republic but WHO have warned that other countries and regions may also be affected.
24th April: Diphtheria annual reports published. From January to December 2024, 12 UK cases, no deaths. Thankfully, there were no cases among asylum seekers with recent arrival in England, compared with 13 cases in 2023 and 72 cases in 2022. Diphtheria is very rare in England due to the success of the immunisation programme introduced in 1942, when the average annual number of cases was about 60,000 with 4,000 deaths. Over the past decade, the number of diphtheria cases in England has increased from an average of 2 to more than 10 cases per year (with the exception of 2020).
24th April: Quarterly pertussis vaccine coverage data was also released today. Pleasing to see that coverage has consistently increased over the past 8 months although still hovering around the 68% uptake mark. So, onwards and upwards!. The shingrix uptake quarterly data was also published today. Seems to be slightly down from comparisons to this time last year. The immunosupressed over 50 group concerns me the most (20% uptake). Meanwhile, the RSV programme is doing much better for vaccine uptake. As of 31 March 2025, the overall vaccine coverage in the catch-up cohorts (adults aged 75 to 79 before the programme start date) reached 60.3%, up from the 54.8% reported in the February 2024 report.
24th April: Meningitis is certainly in the spotlight for pilgrims lately. This news item appeared today: UKHSA urges Hajj and Umrah pilgrims to get meningitis vaccination. UKHSA has confirmed 5 cases of MenW disease between February and March 2025 in people who had recently returned from KSA or in their close contacts in England and Wales.
24th April: Nice to see a trial starting for another treatment for leishmaniasis in Liverpool. Current treatments require daily injections for up to 17 days which can cause immediate pain during the treatment, nausea, vomiting, as well as more serious complications. This study is testing an oral drug (DNDI-6899) that could overcome these barriers and also be easier to store, transport, and administer.
24th April: We REALLY need a new TB vaccine. Results of this trial on MTBVAC look promising ....
24th April: (gosh a lot of things came out on the 24th April!!): This looks soooo exciting!! Slow release of multidose vaccines - first being trialed on my favourite vaccine, rabies. Imagine that? All three doses administered at once in a single injection, but slowly released in the body over time. Also thermostable so no need to refrigerate! BRING IT ON!!!!
28th April: I'll let the first line of this article called "Minnesota Bill Against Vaccines Promotes Disinformation" speak for itself: "A bill introduced in Minnesota attempts to criminalise vaccine technology that has been proven safe and effective, and infectious disease experts are baffled." Within the proposed 'mRNA Bioweapons Prohibition Act', vaccines are referred to as 'weapons of mass destruction'! Wow. Just wow.
28th April: Mpox outbreak continues to meet the WHO criteria of a public health emergency of international concern.
29th April: Noticed today that Dengue appears in the vaccines list now on Travel Health Pro country recommendations (for higher risk countries), rather than the 'other risks' tab. Nice change. Also noticed that there is a QR code option when sharing fact sheets with travelers. Although, couldn't get the email function to work again sadly. I've emailed them and they are looking into it.
30th April: SOOO happy to see travel health get a mention in the April edition of Vaccine Update (which has just come out today)!!
30th April: Another BIG update came along today as well- the 'changes to the routine childhood schedule letter'. Big read with lots of changes to absorb. I won't repeat it all here but do have a good read.... VERY IMPORTANT INFO!! (see webinar link below in June and consider registering for more info)
March 2025
Hello March! Hello a-bit-of-sunshine! Hello crocuses and daffs :-)
I've just been catching up on the data that got updated at the end of Feb - both disease surveillance, and vaccine uptake. The good news is that COVID, flu and RSV reports are starting to decline now. However Norovirus is on the rampage and seems to be increasing. Just a friendly reminder that alcogel does not touch this one so bring on the soap and water (and vaccines)! Uptake of flu vaccines in children of all ages seems to be hovering around the 50% mark. As usual, lowest in London and Midlands but my hometown of Manchester isn't doing so well either. Vaccine uptake in healthcare workers is nationally at 38.1% (last year at this point it was 43.1%). In other groups, the group (as usual) doing the best (by far) for uptake 24/25 is the over 65's. And the only group to have increased in uptake from 23/24 (the rest have generally decreased or stayed the same) is pregnant women. Could the RSV programme have given a helping hand here, encouraging perhaps more opportunistic vaccination with flu?
28th Feb (yes I know it's in the March section but I've only just seen this thanks to the lovely Laura K for pointing it out, and didn't want you to miss it either) Note the changes to the GP contract in annex E.
Here's the summary:
Cessation of Hib/MenC 12-month dose effective from 1 July 2025 : Children who turn 12 months on or before 30 June 2025 will remain eligible for Menitorix® until stock levels are depleted, then the infant should be offered a Hexavalent vaccine (to replace the 12-month Hib dose). Children who turn 12 months on or after 1 July 2025 will not be offered a 12-month Hib/MenC vaccine but instead will receive a routine Hexavalent dose at a new 18-month appointment. This change will start from 01 January 2026 when the new 18-month visit will begin in the childhood vaccination schedule.
DBS test recorded for Hep B at risk babies between 12 and 18 months.
MMR programme schedule change and catch-up effective from 1st Jan 2026: Children turning 18 months on or after 01 January 2026 will receive their 2nd MMR dose at their new 18-month appointment. Children aged 18 months to 2 years 6 months on 01 January 2026 will be invited to a brought forward appointment for their 2nd MMR dose between 01 January 2026 and 31 October 2026. Children aged 2 years and 7 months to 3 years 4 months on 01 January 2026 will receive their 2nd MMR dose at their existing scheduled 3 years 4 months appointment before 31 October 2026.
Varicella introduction and catch-up (subject to final policy decision) effective from 1st Jan 2026: Children turning 12 months on or after 01 January 2026 will receive two doses of MMRV (at 12 and 18 months). Children turning 18 months on or after 01 January 2026 will receive one dose of MMRV (to complete their two-dose MMR schedule). Children aged 18 months to 3 years 4 months on 01 January 2026 will receive one dose of MMRV instead of their 2nd MMR dose. Of this cohort: those aged 18 months to 2 years 6 months will be invited to a brought forward appointment for their 2nd MMR dose (as MMRV) between 1 January 2026 and 31 October 2026. Those aged 2 years 7 months to 3 years 4 months on 1 January 2026 will receive their 2nd MMR dose (as MMRV) at their existing scheduled 3 years 4 months appointment before 31 October 2026. Children aged 3 years 4 months to less than 6 years will be invited for a universal single catch-up dose of MMRV. Appointments to be scheduled from 1 January 2026 and completed by 31 March 2027. Children aged 6 years to less than 11 years will be invited to receive a single dose of MMRV if they have no history of chicken pox. Appointments to be scheduled from 1 January 2026 and completed by 31 March 2027. From 1 April 2027, an opportunistic or on request offer will remain for varicella (as a single dose of MMRV) to all children aged 3 years 4 months to less than 11 years before 1 January 2026 who have no history of chicken pox.
4th March: Forget pancake day - It's HPV awareness day! And this rather sobering news item has appeared: Over a quarter of pupils missing out on HPV vaccine
4th March: Cover of vaccination evaluated rapidly (COVER) programme 2024 to 2025: quarterly data published
6th March: Policy paper published: Departmental minute from the Department of Health and Social Care: notification of contingent liability - COVID-19 spring 2025 vaccination programme. The summary- Vaccination will be offered in England in spring 2025 to adults aged 75 years and over, residents in a care home for older adults, and individuals aged 6 months and over who are immunosuppressed, as defined in tables 3 and 4 of the COVID-19 chapter of the GB. The vaccines that will be supplied for the spring 2025 programme are the Moderna mRNA (Spikevax) vaccine and the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA (Comirnaty) vaccine.
7th March: Oh no :-( Lassa fever contact tracing underway, UKHSA is tracing contacts of a person who travelled to England with Lassa fever and has since returned to Nigeria, with overall public risk remaining very low.
7th March: National Protocol for the administration of COVID-19 mRNA vaccine to individuals aged 5 years and over is here!!
7th March: Oh No!! A second measles death in the USA, not surprisingly, both unvaccinated :-( Huge shame.
7th March: Cholera cases reported in the United Kingdom and Germany linked to Ethiopia
11th March: Green book chapter update for hepatitis B: Updates are that PreHevbri is no longer available in the UK, and to provide a clear description of the types of significant exposure.
12th March: World-first clinical trial shows promise for transformative oral snakebite treatment
13th March: Measles highest in 25 years in Europe, WHO says
13th March: Meningococcal B: vaccine information for healthcare professionals doc updated. The PDF version of this guidance has been replaced by an HTML version. The title has been changed to clearly distinguish this guidance from that for other programmes. The guidance includes updated epidemiological information, and the references to latex and black triangle labeling have been removed.
17th March: Trial of lassa vaccine opens. And on the same day, excellent news: Burundi introduces malaria vaccine into routine immunisation.
19th March: COVID-19 vaccination: spring 2025 campaign resources updated. Also updated is the document; COVID-19 vaccination: information for healthcare practitioners. PLUS the Green Book chapter. Lots of COVID-19 reading to do!! People aged 75 years and older, residents in care homes for older people, and those aged 6 months and over with a weakened immune system will be offered a dose of COVID-19 vaccine in spring 2025.
23rd March: A late-stage tuberculosis vaccine is making its way through clinical trials. This looks promising and shows a 50% efficacy in reducing pulmonary TB in adults with latent TB infection—an unprecedented result in decades of TB vaccine research. The current BCG vaccine lacks in efficacy for adult forms of TB, despite being very good at preventing severe childhood forms of TB. COME ON TB VACCINES!!!
24th March: Vaccine Update has landed. Have a read for info relating to the COVID spring programme, which commences on 1st April and ends on 17th June 2025. Also note that the black triangle designation has been removed from Bexsero, and the tip cap of the vaccine syringe no longer contains latex. There's also a reminder to use the fabulous website; Health Publications UK for all your vaccine-based resources. Also, see if you can make any of the dates mentioned for the conferences and educational opportunities this year that are mentioned in there.
24th March: Sheep flu!!! First case of bird flu in sheep found on UK farm
25th March: Doctors and charities call for gonorrhoea vaccine roll-out. When will we see men b vaccines being used for gonorrhoea? The evidence is there....
25th March 2025: Interesting article about roadblocks for developing combination vaccines. Fewer shots, more protection: The promise of combination vaccines
25th March: UK draws up new disease-threat watch list. The UK has a new watch list of 24 infectious diseases that could pose the greatest future threat to public health. Some are viruses with global pandemic potential - like COVID - while others are illnesses that have no existing treatments or could cause significant harm. Bird flu is (unsuprisingly) on the list, as well as arthropod-borne diseases that may become common with rising temperatures from climate change. One we are all watching over in travel health-world. Paramyxoviridae virus's feature there too. Think: measles :-(
25th March: RSV vaccination is proving to be fruitful! Early data (in the Lancet) from the roll out of the RSV vaccination programme in England shows it is making a significant reduction to hospital admission rates in older people. The findings from UKHSA indicate 30% fewer hospital admissions in 75 to 79 year olds than would have occurred without vaccination. This was seen after around 40% of eligible older people took up the vaccine this winter, and the impact is expected to increase with further vaccine uptake (see the latest uptake data here). Keep going everyone!!
Food for thought: In the latest RSV uptake reports, coverage varied significantly by ethnic group, the highest coverage being reported for the ‘Other ethnic groups - Chinese’ category (66.2%) and lowest for the ‘Mixed - White and Black Caribbean’ category (21.5%).
27th March: Cover of vaccination evaluated rapidly (COVER) programme: annual data- UPDATED. (England annual data on coverage achieved by the childhood immunisation programme). If you scroll down you can see some useful visuals, maps with distribution of % coverage around the UK. Scotland and Wales are still generally doing better at coverage than England on the whole, with London showing lowest coverage. But have a good read through for the details. While we are on uptake of vaccines, there are some other datasets that have also just been updated and here are the headlines: 38.1% of frontline healthcare workers have been vaccinated for influenza- GP surgeries seem to be doing the best for healthcare worker uptake according to the charts. In the other eligible flu cohorts, up to Feb 2025, The over 65's are on top at 74.9% uptake. The clinical risk groups from 6m to 65y are at 40%, pregnant women are at 35%, and 2 and 3 year olds are hovering around 40% uptake. The annual reports from the national PPV immunisation programme are also here (31st March). The main findings were that coverage in those aged 65 and over was 73.1%, an increase of 1.3 percentage points compared with the 2022/23 financial year. Coverage increased with age from 34.8% in those aged 65 to 85.3% in those aged 75 and over. Coverage in those aged 2 to 64 in one or more clinical risk group was 46.5%. Coverage in clinical risk groups ranged from 34.3% (chronic liver disease) to 84.2% (cochlear implants). See the report for more details.
27th March: A sobering headline from the BBC based on some GAVI analysis: One million children could die if US cuts funding, charity warns. And while we are on the US, measles cases are still increasing to worrying levels.
31st March: Meningococcal disease: guidance, data and analysis: updated! Lab case data from July to September 24 are published too (as of 27th march). Following the complete withdrawal of COVID-19 containment measures in England from July 2021, overall case numbers returned to pre-pandemic levels driven mainly by men B. Cases due to the other capsular groups remained very low because of the highly effective indirect (herd) protection provided by the adolescent meningococcal ACWY vaccine programme introduced from August 2015, alongside direct protection in those vaccinated. The distribution of meningococcal cases by capsular group causing invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) between July and September 2024 is summarised in a table in the document but worth noting that Men B accounted for 85.4% of all cases (41 of 48), followed by MenW: 6.3% (3 cases), MenY: 2.1% (1 case), MenC: 2.1% (1 case) and MenE: 2.1% (1 case). There were no confirmed cases for any other capsular groups. There were 41 Men B cases confirmed between July and September 2024, compared to 45 cases in the corresponding period in 2023. Between July and September, Men B was responsible for 93.3% (28 of 30) of IMD cases in individuals under 25 years of age and 72.2% (13 of 18) of cases in individuals aged 25 years or older. All confirmed cases of MenW, MenY and MenC occurred in individuals aged over 25 years. The one case of MenE was aged between 5 and 9 years.
February 2025
February already???
Well, this month has largely been dominated by mpox for me so far. Lots of requests coming in for training, especially on the intradermal technique. And then this announcement on 3rd Feb: NHS opens new mpox vaccination sites across England. And on the 4th Feb, the 9th case of Clade 1b mox was confirmed in the UK. Most cases this year have been associated with travel to Uganda, or in people who have had contact with someone with a travel history.
GOOD NEWS! I have tested the 'share' buttons on Travel Health pro and it's back up and running again. Share as much of those lovely resources as you can again!
3rd Feb: Rabies post-exposure risk management forms updated - added information on Zimbabwean rabies vaccine alert. See the related NaTHNaC advice here. UPDATE: Another update was made to the risk assessment form and calendar for rabies post exposure treatment on the 7th Feb.
4th Feb: Well this is EXCITING news!!! The MHRA has today approved the live chikungunya vaccine (IXCHIQ). (Also see this from Valneva). I think I will be making a chikungunya portal very soon.... maybe when/if the Green Book chapter lands....
4th Feb: There is currently no approved vaccine for the Sudan strain of Ebola. One does exist, however, for the Zaire strain, which has been prevalent in the past in the DRC. So it is (sort of) pleasing to see this article in the BBC news: Uganda begins Ebola vaccine trial after new outbreak. This is a much-needed trial for the Sudan strain. The first patient, a 32-year-old male nurse, died last week. On Monday, the initial participant in the trial, who is currently in isolation, received a dose of the vaccine, which was developed by the International Aids Vaccine Initiative.
5th Feb: Factsheet produced by NaTHNaC about the recent Ebola cases in Uganda. The fatal case above was a nurse working at the Mulago National Reference hospital in Kampala. He sought treatment at a number of different healthcare facilities, as well as a traditional healer. EVD was confirmed by three national reference laboratories after he died on 29 January 2025. Sadly, his wife tested positive on 2 February 2025, after developing signs and symptoms indicative of EVD. So sad :-( and, like the falsified rabies vaccine reminder earlier this month, serves as another poignant reminder about the difficulty of sourcing help in other counties sometimes.
5th Feb 2025: Nasal COVID-19 vaccine to enter US clinical trials. The new trial will evaluate the safety and efficacy of the vaccine administered via two routes: inhaled into the lungs and sprayed into the nose. I absolutely love seeing developments in vaccine administration technology.
6th Feb: Quarterly vaccination coverage statistics for children aged up to 5 years in the UK (COVER programme): July to September 2024 published. Sadly, vaccination coverage measured this quarter remains below peaks in coverage reported in the previous ten-year period, and for a number of antigens, represents a continuation of an ongoing declining trend in coverage. However, well done to Wales and Scotland whom both exceeded the 95% WHO target for coverage for both the ‘6-in-1’ and MMR1 vaccines measured at 5 years. England did not achieve this target, with the worst uptake appearing to be in London.
6th Feb: The RSV chapter in the Green book has been updated with recent evidence on vaccine safety and effectiveness, and latest JCVI advice on selective immunisation with monoclonal antibodies.
6th Feb: GO CEPI!!! Pushing mRNA vaccine development timelines to new speeds. If you don't know about CEPI please check them out... Their mission: To accelerate the development of vaccines and other biologic countermeasures against epidemic and pandemic threats so they can be accessible to all people in need. On the 11th Feb I also spotted this intriguing announcement: CEPI partners with Ethris to increase access to RNA vaccines through spray-dry technique. More nasal vaccine news!
7th Feb: A timely reminder to anyone doing courses that things can change very quickly in the world of immunisation. Today A LOT of mpox guidance has been updated - of course this is just 2 days after delivering a course all about it. I've had some post-course emails to send today! Check everything out if relevant to you. The things that have been either added or updated are:
Smallpox (MVA) vaccination against monkeypox checklist and consent form
Mpox (monkeypox) contacts vaccination resources: Information on the smallpox vaccination used to protect those who have had contact with an mpox case against the monkeypox virus (MPXV).
Mpox (monkeypox) vaccination resources: Information and leaflets to give to the patients and some more patient info specifically on ID technique
I also came across this article from the 30th Jan which has some interesting discussion points about the ongoing outbreaks in Africa, the change in transmission routes, and the susceptibility of children to the more deadly clade 1b.
10th Feb: Cover of vaccination evaluated rapidly (COVER) programme: annual data on the childhood programme updated. Disappointing reading. Vaccine coverage decreased for all of the 14 vaccines in 2023-24. No vaccines met the 95% target. The last vaccination with coverage above 95% was the 5-in-1 one vaccine at age 5 years, 95.2% in 2020-21. MMR1 coverage at 5 years decreased to 91.9%, the lowest level since 2010-11. MMR2 coverage at 5 years decreased to 83.9%, the lowest level since 2009-10. MMR1 coverage at 24 months decreased to 88.9% in 2023-24, the lowest level since 2009-10. Hib/MenC coverage displayed the largest year on year decrease of all coverage measures in 2023-24, falling to 89.4%, a 1% decrease from 2022-23 and the lowest coverage level since 2011-12. All other coverage measures decreased between 0.5% - 0.6%.
12th Feb: Groundbreaking malaria vaccine provides high-level protection with just one dose. This is pretty incredible stuff - and I recommend you read the article to learn more about the biology involved here with parasitic vaccine development. If this reaches the efficacy of over 90% that the WHO calls for, could malaria be a thing of the past sooner than we thought.... wouldn't that be fantastic?!!
13th Feb 2025: The 25/26 Influenza programme information is starting to come through now - check it out!! Here's the flu letter. And here are the vaccines marketed for 25/26.
13th Feb: Pertussis stats for last year are in: In England, provisionally there were 14,905 laboratory confirmed cases of pertussis between January and December 2024 with 554 cases in January 2024 increasing by month to 3,038 in May and then decreasing by month to 179 in December. This compares with 856 laboratory confirmed cases of pertussis reported throughout 2023. There were 10 reported deaths in infants who developed pertussis between January and December 2024. In the 12 years prior to the introduction of maternal pertussis vaccination in October 2012, 63 deaths occurred in babies aged under one year with confirmed pertussis. Since the introduction of pertussis vaccination in pregnancy, from 2013 to the end of December 2024, there have been 31 deaths in babies with confirmed pertussis who were all too young to be fully protected by infant vaccination. Sadly, this includes 10 deaths in infants who had contracted pertussis between January and December 2024. Of the 31 infants that died, 25 had mothers who were not vaccinated in pregnancy.
13th Feb: Boooo! J&J, Sanofi stop E.coli vaccine trial due to low effectiveness. Interesting fact while we are on E.coli: Last year, 104 people fell sick and 34 were hospitalised due to an outbreak caused by the O157:H7 strain that was linked to McDonald's Quarter Pounders (which incidentally is my personal go to when dining at McDonalds eek).
11th Feb: Number of confirmed Ebola cases in Uganda rises to nine
14th Feb: U.S. conditionally approves vaccine to protect poultry from avian flu. This led me to ask the question: How do you vaccinate a bird? So I looked it up and here is some info if you are now curious too.
15th Feb 2025: Penmenvy, GSK’s 5-in-1 meningococcal vaccine, approved by US FDA to help protect against MenABCWY
18th Feb: Both the guidance for the Maternal RSV and Older Adults RSV vaccination programmes have been updated to reflect new data on Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) a very rare side effect of the Abrysvo vaccine, updated contraindications and information on vaccination of those under 18 who are pregnant.
19th Feb: Smallpox and mpox Green Book chapter updated: Amendment to post-exposure recommended use to include those previously primed with a live smallpox vaccine (in addition to those who have had one dose of MVA-BN) vaccine.
27th Feb: Test identifies prior infection by Zika virus and all four dengue virus serotypes. Brazilian researchers have developed a simple test that almost instantly tells whether a person has been exposed to any of the four dengue virus serotypes, as well as Zika virus. The test is an enzyme immunoassay similar to ELISA, a platform widely used in laboratory testing throughout Brazil. The technology can easily be adapted for use in automated systems and rapid point-of-care tests.
28th Feb: mRESVIA RSV vaccine approved to protect patients aged 60 and over. The MHRA has approved an mRNA respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine (brand name mRESVIA) to protect patients aged 60 and over against lower respiratory tract disease caused by RSV.
28th Feb: Vaccine update has landed!
Here's a collection of more interesting things I have enjoyed reading this month:
Duke researchers achieve breakthrough in HIV vaccine, development,
Microscopic pillars on insect wings give bugs an antibacterial superpower, Heat stable and intrinsically sterile liquid protein formulations (the title doesn't look terribly exciting BUT this is a very important area of trying to make medicine formulations more stable outside of the cold chain. Very important especially, for countries that have intermittent electricity supply, limited resources, and very hot climates).
Blood Test Predicts How Long Vaccines Will Protect You - loving the moves towards personalised vaccination
Robert F Kennedy Jr sworn in as health secretary after Senate confirmation: Vaccine skeptic now leads US’s vast healthcare system after gaining backing of key Republican senators (actually - did NOT enjoy reading this one OR this one: Trump’s dismantling of USAid raises risk of mpox global emergency, experts warn)
‘It’s a cowboy show out there’: the deadly lottery of the snakebite antivenom industry. One for the travel health reading list. And a reminder again of the difficulties of finding the right treatments abroad.
Fatal journeys: causes of death in international travellers in South America. A reminder to tailor advice to the demographic characteristics in the traveller.
Upcoming conferences:
17th - 18th June - The UKHSA’s 12th National Immunisation Network (NIN25) training conference will focus on current and emerging scientific issues in immunisation and implementation issues relating to the national immunisation programme. I REALLY wish I could go but I'm booked in for some training sessions (imms updates ironically) and I don't like to let my clients down :-( tell me ALL about it if you go!!!
10th-13th March 6pm each day- Immunisation Update – The Webinar Series
22nd March - Registration is now open for the 8th RCN and NaTHNaC joint Travel Health Conference
24th March - World TB Day conference
7th March - I'm delivering a free webinar over lunch time (1230-1330) about injection technique. Follow this link for details. Injection Perfection: Could Small Changes Improve Your Practice?
Welcome to January 2025! Happy New Year
Hope you had a nice end to 2024 and managed to get some relaxing in. We were all poorly here with a disease I could not identify so I have called it respiratorycoronialpertussianinfluenzae to cover all bases. We managed to escape norovirus thankfully - but many in the UK did not sadly. Hope you and your families managed to stay well, or at least happy.
I highly recommend reading this from the GHTC as a bit of a summary for 2024: A year in review: The global health innovation stories that shaped 2024
What can we expect to see in 2025 I wonder? Is that Chicken pox vaccine programme coming? Will mpox, COVID-19 and marburg keep at bay? Will we be using a chikungunya, malaria or zika vaccine in the UK? Will AI be featuring more and more in the literature? I'll try to keep you posted here as usual!
PLEASE NOTE: on my courses I often share the advice about using the share buttons on Travel Health Pro to email travellers factsheets and important information that you might not have time to discuss fully in a consult. HOWEVER, I have noticed that this feature isn't working lately so I have contacted NaTHNaC and raised it with them. They concur that it is not working and are looking into it. I will keep you updated here when I hear of any updates. UPDATE: FIXED!
1st Jan: With effect from 1st January 2025, the responsibility for the marketing and distribution of Rabipur transitions from Valneva to Bavarian Nordic, in partnership with Polar Speed Distribution. I wonder if this means there may be some shortages of rabies vaccines ahead as often is the case when transitions are happening...
7th Jan: Vaccine update: issue 353, December 2024, end of year special published. This bit is one to pay attention to... "We are also planning for a wider set of changes to the routine childhood schedule in 2025, which is one of the most significant changes to this programme in decades and will be the subject of one of our special editions early next year." I'm intrigued... I wonder if this is just to do with the potential move to an 18m vaccination visit for children to account for the chicken pox prog using MMRV vaccines, and a hep b/hib dose on the exit of mentiorix? Or could it be something else?
10th Jan: As of 10 January 2025, a further vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (VDPV2) has been detected in an environmental sewage sample from London collected in December 2024.
16th Jan: BBC article: Rise of vaccine distrust - why more of us are questioning jabs
16th Jan 2025: Do not underestimate the risks of pregnancy and Zika, read this cautionary tale here. This lady was not aware of Zika at her destination in Thailand. I wonder who gave her travel health advice or if she even sought it? And why hadn't the maternity teams picked up on the travel plans? So sad :-(
EDIT: Big thanks for Karen Rudd for sharing this more academic piece with me upon sharing the above Sun article: The first UK case of congenital Zika syndrome
17th Jan: Updated routine immunisation schedule posters - time for a clear out of the Sept 2024 copies to replace them with the Jan 2025 ones. NOTE: updated again (just as I printed out 20 copies for a course) on 22nd Jan...)
17th Jan: Article - Tanzania denies new Marburg virus outbreak, as WHO recommends travel restrictions
20th Jan: The Visual Guide to Vaccines poster has been updated to include repevax. The guidance for inadvertent administration of MMR, Shingles and varicella vaccines in pregnancy has also been updated. Plus the advice for vaccines in pregnancy for pregnant women information.
20th Jan: Another UK case of mpox clade 1b. On 20 January 2025, the UK Health Security Agency reported one new case of clade Ib mpox in a returned traveller who recently visited Uganda. This is the sixth confirmed clade Ib mpox case in England since October 2024 and has no known links to previous UK cases. Go here for further info.
22nd Jan: The routine imms schedule has been updated AGAIN to reflect a change to the use of REPEVAX rather than Boostrix-IPV at 3 years and 4 months. Worth noting that the left thigh is no longer specified for Men B vaccination in either the Complete immunisation schedule or the Routine Childhood immunisation schedule. The Men B training and healthcare professional resources are currently being updated and will include the same information.
22nd Jan: The Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe announced that falsified rabies vaccine is circulating through unauthorised sources in Zimbabwe. They report this falsified product poses a significant threat to public health due to the possibility of lack of efficacy, harmful components and the risk of treatment failure in preventing rabies, a fatal disease.
23rd Jan: The School leaver booster (Td/IPV): vaccine coverage estimates and the HPV vaccine coverage for 23-24 are out - portals updated accordingly. It made me quite sad looking at the uptake data, I have to admit. HPV coverage for year 10 students was 76.7% for females and 71.2% for males. Td/IPV coverage for year 10 students during the 2023/24 was 72.7%, which is 6.8 percentage points lower than the year 10 cohort in 2022/23. I happened to come across this article at the same time which is quite relevant to youngsters and opinions about vaccination: Why 18 to 24-year-olds aren't getting jabs - and if it matters
23rd Jan: On 14 January 2025, the WHO reported an outbreak of suspected Marburg in north-western Tanzania. So far, a total of 25 suspected cases and one confirmed across these two districts, have been reported. Contacts of the cases, including healthcare workers, are reported to have been identified and are under follow-up in both districts. The source of the outbreak is currently unknown. A previous MVD outbreak in Tanzania occurred in March 2023 and lasted for nearly two months, with nine cases including six deaths. Read more about it here.
27th Jan: Farm worker contracts human case of bird flu. This was in Shropshire where sadly, a million chickens have to be killed now. We may be seeing price increases for eggs if this carries on. Although the worse consequence is bird flu of course.
29th Jan: A maternity special Vaccine Update has landed. I'm finding that vaccine uptake in this group is very disappointing :-( I'm glad the UKHSA is shining a spotlight on this important topical area. And interesting fact reported in there: fewer babies were born in England and Wales in 2023 than in any year since 1977 and in Scotland the lowest ever recorded number of babies were born! And I didn't know that 28th September is the most common birthday! Not a good time to be a newborn when a typical RSV season in the UK starts in October and peaks in December, alongside flu. Pre-vaccines, RSV accounted for 33,500 hospitalisations annually in children aged under 5. Babies under 6 months of age are at risk of serious illness and complications from flu. I also didn't know about RAVS; From September 2024 the Record a Vaccination Service (RAVS) system was introduced by NHS England for use in maternity units. This allows maternity services to record pertussis, RSV, and flu vaccinations, making it easier and quicker for maternity services to record the vaccine and send the information through to general practice. Maternity units recording vaccinations in RAVS, should no longer send additional notification of these records to GPs, as this may create duplicate entries in the patient’s GP record. Vaccinations recorded in RAVS are visible in the GP record which means that GPs no longer need to manually input all the vaccinations into their system. Seems pretty efficient to me!
30th Jan: Flu and COVID-19 surveillance report published. In Week 4 of 2025 influenza activity overall decreased across most indicators and was at medium activity levels. There continues to be an increase in influenza B across some indicators. The predominant circulating flu strain continues to be A H1N1 clade 5a.2a. Analysis by UKHSA shows that the H1N1 component of the flu vaccine is well matched. COVID-19 activity remained stable across most indicators and was at baseline activity levels. RSV activity showed a mixed picture and was circulating at low levels overall.The most recent week-to-week data shows that over 140,000 pregnant women have now been vaccinated since the programme launched in September. Norovirus though - Norovirus cases are over double what we would usually see at this time of year. This isn’t just horrid for those affected - it’s also having a big impact on acute settings and care homes. Roll on Norovirus vaccines.... please come to us sooooon.
27th Jan: This makes me sad: CDC health officials in US ordered to stop working with WHO immediately
29th Jan: UKHSA PCV Risk Groups PGD amended- check it out, but here are the highlights: newly licensed vaccine (Vaxneuvance PCV 15), updated considerations for those getting a cochlear implant, clarification of exclusion criteria, and clarity on offers to those at risk over 10 years old. Interval clarified as 8 weeks - not 2 months in line with Green Book.
30th Jan: The uptake data is out for Shingrix between 1st Sept 2023 and 31st August 2024 (the full first year of the programme). Find the summary on the link or in the Shingles portal.
