Immunizations have long been one of Vermont’s most powerful public health tools, helping protect both individuals and communities from serious illness. But keeping track of your vaccine status can feel surprisingly complicated.
Who hasn’t had that moment in urgent care, staring blankly when asked, “When was your last tetanus shot?” And if you’re managing not just your own vaccines, but also those of your kids or aging parents, the challenges only multiply.
Health care providers have long relied on a powerful tool for accessing the most complete immunization histories possible for their patients: the Vermont Department of Health’s Vermont Immunization Registry, a secure, centralized system containing Vermonters’ immunization records. Now, that data is even more efficiently accessible to busy primary care providers and practice staff through a partnership between VITL (Vermont’s nonprofit health data sharing network), the Vermont Department of Health, and practices and hospitals around the state.
VITL offers a new service to primary care practices and other health care provider offices, directly connecting their electronic health records to the Vermont Immunization Registry, so they can query for data in an instant, without opening another program.
In the past year, VITL delivered immunization data into providers’ electronic health records over half a million times. For patients, it happens behind the scenes, delivering their essential records to their health care providers when and where they need them.
Here are three things to know about how VITL is helping you stay on top of essential immunizations.
1) What is health information sharing?
At the heart of this effort is health information sharing — but what does that actually mean?
In short, it’s the secure electronic sharing of your medical information, like vaccine history, among your providers. VITL connects many Vermont practices and hospitals to each other and centralizes data to create one health record for each Vermonter. That record includes information like your name and date of birth, along with allergies, medications, lab results, and immunizations.
Having one record from the many places you receive care enables your providers to access a more complete, up-to-date picture of your medical history and current treatments. The data is available to health care providers and staff, insurance providers for certain initiatives such as care coordination, and public health professionals like the staff at the Vermont Department of Health who lead initiatives to keep Vermonters healthy and well.
2) Faster access to immunization records means better care
A real-world example of this system in action comes from Primary Care Health Partners (PCHP), one of Vermont’s largest independent medical groups.
In the past, PCHP staff often had to manually check state records or call pharmacies to get vaccine histories — a time-consuming process for already busy primary care staff. But now (thanks to the Immunization Registry Query & Response Service, as it is known to the medical community), things have gotten easier.
Now, with just a few clicks, PCHP providers and staff can instantly pull immunization records from the Vermont Immunization Registry right in their own electronic health record, freeing up valuable time for patient care. PCHP estimates their nurses save more than an hour and 20 minutes every day, thanks to the VITL service. This system also ensures that clinicians have the most current immunization data, which is critical for supporting each individual’s health and for protecting vulnerable populations and improving public health outcomes.
3) Updated immunization records help patients stay on schedule
One of the biggest advantages of this system is its ability to help keep immunization schedules on track.
The VITL service enables primary care clinicians and staff to pull immunization records from other providers’ offices — and from clinics and pharmacies — right into their patient’s record for a more comprehensive immunization history. Even better, the system can flag upcoming or overdue immunizations, helping patients and families stay ahead of their health needs even if they can’t track everything themselves.
“Immunizations are crucial for preventing the spread of infectious diseases,” says Amanda Jones, Informatics Director at the Vermont Department of Health. “The Vermont Immunization Registry gives health care providers easy access to individual vaccination records and forecasts future patient immunization needs — this technology is keeping people in Vermont up-to-date on vaccines and really protecting our communities.”
By connecting the dots across the health care system, VITL is making it easier for providers and patients alike to manage immunizations — a win not just for individuals, but also for public health across the state. It’s one more reason Vermont continues to rank among the healthiest states in the country.
If you want to learn more about how VITL shares your health data with health care providers, there is information on vitl.net/sharing. Every Vermonter has options, and you can explore them on the VITL website. The VITL team is also available to talk with you and answer questions about health information sharing Monday–Friday between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., excluding holidays. VITL’s toll-free number is 1-888-980-1243.
