Cold chain management - provider resources

All health services, including medical practices, hospitals, community clinics, community pharmacies, aged care facilities, mobile services and outreach providers using automated temperature monitoring and back-to-base alarm systems for monitoring vaccine refrigerators are required to follow ‘Strive for 5’.

Refer to Automated temperature monitoring and back-to-base alarm systems for vaccine temperature monitoring requirements.

Health services must have documented policies and procedures for vaccine management. These should include processes for recording equipment maintenance, vaccine transport, and staff education.

A vaccine storage self audit must be completed every 12 months and more frequently where there have been problems with:

• equipment or
• cold chain breaches.

Use the Strive for 5, Appendix 2 - Vaccine storage self-audit tool to complete the audit.

Power failures occur for many reasons. How your service manages a power failure may depend on factors including the cause of the power outage, whether prior notice was given, and the time of day the outage occurs.

In the event of a power outage or refrigerator failure, ensure you have:

• a back-up plan available and staff trained to manage power failures
• alternative vaccine storage options ready
• a portable minimum/maximum digital thermometer available.

Refer to the Strive for 5, Appendix 7 - Checklist for managing a power failurefor managing a power failure.

For outreach and mobile immunisation clinics, or emergency storage:

• Vaccines should be packed into a cooler and their temperature monitored while they remain contained within the cooler.
• Purpose-built vaccine refrigerators do not have freezer compartments. An additional refrigerator with a freezer section will be required for storing ice packs and gel packs for emergencies or when preparing a cooler for transport.
• Refer to the ‘Strive for 5’, Appendix 6 - Mobile and emergency storage checklistfor mobile or outreach immunisation clinics, or emergency storage of vaccines, to ensure vaccines are stored or transported within the recommended cold chain temperature range.

National vaccine storage guidelines resource collection provides cold chain resources for health services, including checklists, vaccine refrigerator temperature monitoring charts, posters and stickers.