Advances in vaccine delivery and efficacy discussed at National Immunization Conference

Center for Vaccine Awareness and Research at Texas Children's Hospital

Advances in vaccine delivery and efficacy were discussed at the 44th National Immunization Conference sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A research study by each of the four directors from the Center for Vaccine Awareness and Research at Texas Children's Hospital was presented. Held in Atlanta, more than 1,600 health professionals and medical experts attended the conference and explored innovative strategies for developing programs, policy and research to promote immunizations.

"We're proud of the body of research that the Center for Vaccine Awareness and Research was able to share at the National Immunization Conference," said Dr. Carol J. Baker, center executive director and chair of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Our research studies on attitudes toward vaccinations, rotavirus prevention, cocooning to prevent pertussis and school-based immunization programs have provided the scientific community with valuable data that we can use in educating parents about immunizations."

Along with Baker, the center's three additional directors who had findings from their specialty area presented at the conference are: Drs. Julie A. Boom, director of Infant and Childhood Immunization; C. Mary Healy, director of Vaccinology and Maternal Immunization; and Amy B. Middleman, director of Adolescent and Young Adult Immunization.