Keynote Speakers
Representatives from the Michigan Department of Community Health, local health departments, and community providers will be presenting at the conferences. The keynote speakers are listed below.

William Atkinson, MD, MPH
Dr. Atkinson is scheduled to speak at the conferences in Troy and Detroit (Nov. 12 & 13). He will give the Vaccine Update presentation and will participate in the Troubleshooting Panel session. Dr. Atkinson is a medical epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). He is the principle writer and presenter for numerous national satellite broadcasts on vaccine-preventable diseases, as well as the author or co-author of 38 publications on vaccine-preventable diseases, including the Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases textbook.

Sharon Humiston, MD, MPH
Dr. Humiston is scheduled to speak at the conference in East Lansing (Nov. 20). She will give the Vaccine Update presentation and will participate in the Troubleshooting Panel session. Dr. Humiston is an associate professor of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. She works with a Rochester team to increase immunization rates for infants and adolescents in the inner city and serves as a member of the National Vaccine Advisory Committee. Formerly she was as an immunization educator for CDC National Immunization Program.

John Iskander, MD, MPH
Dr. Iskander is the Acting Director at the Immunization Safety Office, CDC. He is scheduled to speak at the conference in East Lansing (Nov. 20). He will give a vaccine safety presentation. Dr. Iskander joined CDC in 2000, serving as project officer and later team lead for the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) before being named in 2006 as associate director for science in the Immunization Safety Office (ISO).   He has served as Acting Director of ISO since February 2007. Dr. Iskander is a steering committee member of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, an American Academy of Pediatrics fellow and a recipient of the PHS Citation and Commendation medal for his work with CDC's Immunization Safety Office. He has over 25 published articles and has authored review articles and textbook chapters on vaccine safety surveillance, advanced signal detection in vaccine safety and pandemic influenza vaccine safety monitoring.

Andrew T. Kroger, MD, MPH
Dr. Kroger is scheduled to speak at the conferences in Kalamazoo and Ypsilanti (Oct. 28-30). He will give the Vaccine Update presentation and will participate in the Troubleshooting Panel session. Dr. Kroger is a medical epidemiologist with the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at CDC. As one of the traveling trainers in the Education, Information and Partnership Branch, Dr. Kroger has given over one hundred presentations that include immunization updates and pandemic influenza preparedness. He is also involved with some of the new distance learning activities of the branch, including the Current Issues in Immunization Series delivered through NetConferencing, and is the author of the newest edition of the CDC's General Recommendations on Immunization.

Donna Weaver, RN, MN
Ms. Weaver is scheduled to speak at the conferences in Gaylord and Marquette (Oct. 14 & 16). She will give the Vaccine Update presentation and will participate in the Troubleshooting Panel session. Ms. Weaver is the Nurse Educator for the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at CDC. As an immunization nurse educator, Donna travels nationally providing immunization training and information to the public and to healthcare professionals. Ms. Weaver also provides clinical consultation to immunization providers and assists in the development of immunization continuing education products offered by CDC, including the yearly CDC course: Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases.


The Program

Vaccine Update
The speaker will discuss the importance of vaccines and protecting people of all ages from vaccine preventable diseases. The recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices for the use of vaccines will be included. The emphasis will be on new recommendations and newly-licensed vaccines. Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to identify the vaccines indicated for all ages across the lifespan.

Michigan Care Improvement Registry (MCIR) Update
Recent enhancements to MCIR will be discussed, including information about MCIR tools available for clinicians to track and monitor adolescent immunization coverage levels. Improvements to the registry for tracking and monitoring influenza vaccinations will be discussed. An update will be provided on the new Vaccine Inventory Management (VIM) module and e-ordering. Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to identify the MCIR tools available for tracking and monitoring adolescent immunization coverage levels.

Vaccine-Preventable Diseases Update
With long-distance travel commonplace and vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs) occurring throughout the world, foreign epidemics can cause domestic cases and outbreaks. The speaker will discuss a recent measles multi-state measles outbreak resulting from international travel, and provide a brief update on other current VPD happenings in Michigan. Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to explain the relevance for Michigan of a disease outbreak in Matsuyama.

Hot Topics in Immunization
The presenter will update the conference participants on timely vaccine news. The emphasis will be on immunization topics or immunization research publications that are receiving media coverage or are of interest to providers. Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to identify recently developing immunization issues.

Following a New Vaccine from Pre-licensure to Post-licensure 
The speaker will describe the process of how a new vaccine is developed, licensed, and monitored post-licensure. The three levels of pre-licensure testing will be discussed, as well as the systems that monitor vaccines post-licensure. Several real-life examples will be given that demonstrate that the system works. Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to describe two real-life examples of when the post-licensure vaccine monitoring system worked.

Your Role in Promoting Vaccine Safety 
The speaker will discuss the health care provider's role in vaccine safety. Topics to be covered include vaccine storage and handling, administration techniques, and documentation. Using a train-the-trainer teaching method, the speaker will show conference participants how to train current and new staff in their clinics. Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to explain the key reasons why it is critical that proper techniques be followed for vaccine storage and handling, vaccine administration, and documentation.

Talking with Families about Vaccines
This session will highlight several approaches for empathic, effective risk communication with parents. Resources for information on immunization issues will also be identified. Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to list two strategies for communicating effectively with parents about their vaccine safety concerns.

Troubleshooting Panel
A panel made up of a physician, an immunization nurse educator, and a representative from the Michigan Department of Community Health will answer questions from conference participants. Upon completion of this session, participants will be able to identify recently developing immunization issues.


Frequently Asked Questions

Will nurses and physicians get continuing education credits/CMEs?

Continuing Education Credits available for Nurses
The Michigan Nurses Association (MNA) will provide certificates awarding 5.5 contact hours to participants who are nurses (R.N.s or L.P.N.s) and who attend the conference. Nursing CE certificates will be available towards the end of the conference. The Michigan Nurses Association is accredited as a provider of continuing education in nursing by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, Commission on Accreditation.

CMEs available for Physicians
The Michigan State Medical Society (MSMS) is accredited by the MSMS Committee on CME Accreditation to provide continuing medical education for physicians.  MSMS designates these educational activities for a maximum of 5.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™.  Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

When and how can I register for one of these conferences?
Registration information about the conferences will be distributed electronically on August 1. All registrations will be online. To assure that the conference registration information is sent to you, send an e-mail message to MBenhamza@msms.org. Enter only the word SUBSCRIBE in the SUBJECT field. You will be added to the Immunization Listserv and conference registration information will be emailed to you on
August 1. Information about the conferences - including details about how to register - will also be posted on this website.

Are you saying that everyone is required to sign up for the Immunization Listserv?
It depends. If you already receive periodic emails about immunization and vaccine safety, as well as the Michigan Immunization Update newsletter, from Marianne Ben Hamza at MBenhamza@msms.org that means that you are already on the immunization listserv. Therefore, it is NOT necessary to sign up again. All of the people who receive the newsletter by email will automatically receive the conference brochure by email.

Do I have to register in August?
Most of the conferences fill up in advance every year. Because the space is limited, we encourage you to register early. Therefore, when registration begins on August 1, it is strongly recommended that you register within a few weeks. (Usually, 1-2 conferences fill up within a month.)

What will the cost be?
The standard registration fee will be $50. For late registrants, the fee will increase to $75. More payment details will be included on the conference registration website, which will go live August 1. (Beginning August 1, a link to the conference registration website will be provided on this website.)

Can I use a credit card?
YES! We will be able to accept online credit card payments this year! We encourage you to use credit cards if at all possible. However, you will still have the option of paying with a check.

When & where when can I get more information about these conferences?
As more details become available, the information will be posted on this website. 

I was told that conference brochures won't be printed and distributed this year. Is that true?
Yes, that is correct, conference brochures will not be printed and distributed this year.

Printable handout: Frequently Asked Questions

Questions? Email Rosemary Franklin at franklinr@michigan.gov.