AusVaxSafety in the media

AusVaxSafety, Australia’s vaccine safety surveillance program, was acknowledged in the media this week for its “development of a world-leading vaccine safety project”. 

Using de-identified data reported directly from people receiving the vaccines (or their parent or carer), AusVaxSafety monitors adverse events following immunisation and facilitates early detection of potential vaccine safety issues.

In the days following vaccination, responses are solicited via an automated SMS or email sent using AusVaxSafety surveillance tools (SmartVax or Vaxtracker), which have been implemented in more than 300 sentinel sites across Australia, including general practices, hospitals, schools, community clinics and Aboriginal Medical Services. 

Immunisation coordinator at Hunter New England Health Patrick Cashman spoke with ABC Newcastle on the development of VaxTracker following adverse reactions in children to the influenza vaccine in 2010. Cashman noted "..the information is coming directly from the consumer, not doctors and nurses, so it's a really transparent system. We'd like to think that goes to confidence about vaccine safety here in Australia and Australia is the only country this far advanced with this sort of system."

NCIRS Director Professor Kristine Macartney also contributed to the interview, providing further context on the safety monitoring process following the vaccination.  Additionally, NCIRS Research Fellow Dr Helen Quinn spoke with Australia Wide on ABC Radio National (from 10mins; 12seconds) about the national impact of the AusVaxSafety system.