Safe storage of vaccines is a crucial component of protecting patients against disease. Failure to store vaccines properly may result in loss of patient confidence in the vaccine program.
Storing vaccines properly is an essential part of providing quality care to patients. To maintain vaccine effectiveness, the cold chain of the vaccine must be maintained. The vaccine cold chain is a temperature-controlled environment used to maintain and distribute vaccines in optimal conditions. It starts with the manufacturer and ends with the site of vaccine administration. If the cold chain of the vaccine is not maintained, the vaccine will lose potency and become ineffective.
What equipment is available for vaccine storage?
Several types of vaccine storage units are available. Units specially designed for this purpose are specifically designed for storing vaccines.
Use of specially designed or pharmaceutical grade units designed for refrigeration or freezing is recommended. These units can be compact, stylish under the counter or large. Specially designed units, sometimes referred to as ‘pharmaceutical grade’, are specifically designed for the storage of biological substances, including vaccines. These units often have:
Microprocessor-based temperature control with a digital temperature sensor.
Fan-forced air circulation with powerful fans or multiple cold air outlets that promote uniform temperature and rapid temperature recovery from a temperature outside the range.
To fully ensure the safety of vaccines, the equipment should include a recommended unit with sufficient space to accommodate its maximum no-clutter inventory.
What are the temperature ranges in which these equipment should operate?
Refrigerators must maintain temperatures between 2 °C and 8 °C . Freezers should maintain temperatures between -80 °C and -15 °C. For refrigerator or freezer thermostats, they must be set to the factory-set temperature or midpoint, which will decrease the likelihood of temperature excursions. The only way to know the temperature where vaccines are stored is to measure and monitor it with a temperature-monitoring device.
What should you consider?
If vaccines are exposed to erroneous weather conditions, they may become unstable and ineffective, with fatal consequences. For this reason all important air conditioning parameters must be monitored to meet the high quality standards. In this sense it is of the utmost importance to comply with and document the defined constant temperatures of the delicate vaccines as well as a continuous cold chain throughout the product cycle.
Whether it is in vaccination centers, nursing homes, or doctors’ offices. In relation to vaccination, continuous monitoring of adequate storage and ideal refrigeration should be ensured until the vaccine is administered to humans. Particularly delicate vaccines require even continuous refrigeration up to -80°C, such as the Covid 19 vaccine. Failure to comply with the minimum temperature limit value may adversely affect vaccines.
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