Vaccination Information for Healthcare Professionals

Immunizations help save lives, prevent serious illnesses, and are recognized as one of the most effective public health interventions available today. Publicly funded vaccines are available to the public to reduce the burden of vaccine preventable diseases in Ontario.

Healthcare providers can order publicly funded vaccines through York Region Public Health if they meet the minimum vaccine storage and handling standards under the Ministry’s Vaccine Storage and Handling Protocol, 2018 (or as current)

Recent Notices

Older notices are posted in the Archive section below.

Vaccine Storage and Handling

Vaccines are sensitive biological substances that can lose their potency and effectiveness if they are exposed to temperatures (heat and/or cold) outside the required temperature range of +2.0ºC to +8.0ºC or when exposed to light.

Failure to adhere to specified cold chain requirements may reduce vaccine potency, resulting in lack of protection against vaccine preventable diseases.

Public health units are required by the Vaccine Storage and Handling Protocol, 2018 (or as current) under the Ontario Public Health Standards, issued under the authority of the Health Protection and Promotion Act to inspect premises, at least once annually, where publicly funded vaccines are stored. Each refrigeration unit intended for vaccine storage must be inspected before use, and annually thereafter, to ensure it meets the minimum standards.

During the cold chain maintenance inspection, York Region Public Health staff will validate the accuracy of the digital minimum-maximum thermometer installed in the vaccine storage refrigeration unit, provide education strategies to mitigate and minimize vaccine wastage, and promote vaccine safety and effectiveness.

Vaccine refrigeration units must demonstrate the ability to maintain temperatures between +2.0°C to +8.0°C before receiving publicly funded vaccines.  A vaccine refrigeration unit temperature log with a minimum of the most current five (5) business days of temperature recordings must be submitted with each vaccine order form.

Any vaccine refrigeration unit temperature readings below +2.0ºC and/or above +8.0ºC must be reported to York Region Public Health immediately.  Contact the Vaccine Inventory program at 1-877-464-9675 Ext. 74065 to report any vaccine exposures to temperatures below +2.0ºC and/or above +8.0ºC. Post signage on the refrigerator door to alert staff stating: "Adverse Storage Condition: Do Not Use Vaccines - Public Health Assessment in Progress". Do not administer or discard the vaccines until York Region Public Health has completed an adverse storage condition (ASC) investigation and determined viability of the exposed vaccines.

Vaccine Storage and Handling Resources

Vaccine Storage and Handling Training Videos: Register to watch instructional vaccine videos about transporting, storing and handling publicly funded vaccines.

Vaccine inventory management, including proper storage and handling of vaccines, plays a role in the success of immunization programs. By understanding and implementing proper vaccine storage and handling practices, healthcare professionals can play a critical role in improving the health of Ontarians by ensuring that administered vaccines retain their potency.

The following resources can help healthcare professionals properly store and handle publicly funded vaccines:

Practice Resources for Immunizers

Vaccine Specific Resources

Immunization Resources/Guides

Healthcare Provider Forms

Healthcare providers who want to set up a new account to store and administer publicly funded vaccines with York Region Public Health must complete a New Healthcare Provider Application Form

Healthcare providers with an existing York Region Public Health account who need to update their account profile, contact information or status, or report a moved, replacement, or new additional vaccine refrigeration unit, must complete a ​​​​​Request to Update Vaccine Ordering Account Profile

Email completed forms to @email. A member of the Vaccine Inventory team will contact you with further instructions if your facility qualifies for an on-site cold chain maintenance inspection.

Vaccine Order Forms

To order publicly funded vaccines, email your completed vaccine order form to @email or fax to 905-830-0578. A vaccine refrigeration unit temperature log with a minimum of the most current five (5) business days of temperature recordings must be submitted with each vaccine order form.

If you have any general inquiries about the vaccine order form, vaccine ordering process, or status of your vaccine order request, please contact the Vaccine Inventory program at 1-877-464-9675 Ext. 74033.

Publicly Funded Vaccines Order Form for use when ordering routine publicly funded vaccines.  Note: The Ministry of Health requires healthcare providers to maintain no more than a one (1) month supply of publicly funded vaccines to prevent overstocking and minimize vaccine wastage.

High-Risk Vaccines Order Form for use when ordering Hepatitis A vaccine, Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, meningococcal C-ACWY-135 vaccine, multicomponent meningococcal B vaccine, Haemophilus influenza type B (Hib) vaccine and Polio (IPV) vaccine for eligible high-risk individuals.

High-Risk Hepatitis B Vaccine Order Form for use when ordering Hepatitis B vaccine for eligible high-risk individuals.

Influenza Vaccine Order Form for use when ordering publicly funded influenza vaccines. Note: Order form for the Universal Influenza Immunization Program (UIIP) 2022-2023 is currently unavailable until further notice.  Please contact 1-877-464-9675 Ext. 74033 or @email for more information on influenza vaccine availability.

Grade 7 School Vaccines Order Form for use when ordering Hepatitis B, Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and Meningococcal C-ACWY-135 vaccines for eligible students who are unable to receive these vaccines at a York Region Public Health community or school immunization clinic. Please encourage your patients or their parents/guardians to report doses received to York Region Public Health.

York Region Public Health school and community immunization clinics for immunizations against Hepatitis B, Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and Meningococcal ACYW-135 are available for eligible students. Please encourage your patients to book an appointment at an immunization clinic online or call Access York at 1-877-464-9675 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday.

COVID-19 Vaccines

Health care providers are uniquely positioned to answer questions, provide information, and immunize their patients against COVID-19.

If you have questions about COVID-19 vaccine storage and handling or how to onboard your facility to order COVID-19 vaccines, please contact the Vaccine Inventory program at @email or 1-877-464-9675 Ext. 50174.

Additional information on COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines is available on the Ministry of Health’s website and through York Region’s COVID-19 information for Health Professionals.

Resources:

Universal Influenza Immunization Program (UIIP)

Ontario’s Universal Influenza Immunization Program (UIIP) provides publicly funded influenza vaccines for individuals six months of age or older who live, work, or attend school in Ontario. The objectives of the UIIP campaign are listed below.

  • Maximize the use of influenza vaccine doses purchased by Ontario
  • Minimize the wastage of influenza vaccine doses purchased by Ontario 
  • Optimize the efficiency of influenza vaccine distribution
  • Reduce impacts on the health system due to influenza in anticipation of the co-circulation of COVID-19

Additional information on influenza and the UIIP is available on the Ministry of Health’s website.​​​

Resources:

Vaccine Wastage

Expired or unviable vaccines must be immediately removed from the vaccine refrigeration unit and clearly labeled as “Wastage – Do Not Use” to prevent the administration of expired or non-viable products to patients. Note: Vaccines without a specified date of expiry (Example: MR 2023) are viable until the last day of the month (Example: March 31, 2023).

With the exception of wasted or expired COVID-19 vaccines, vaccine wastage should be returned to York Region Public Health with a completed Non-Reusable Vaccines Wastage Form for Health Care Providers Form.

All vaccine wastage returns must be accompanied with a completed wastage form. Do not return other drugs (e.g., antibiotics, antivirals, birth control, etc.) or medical or blood products (e.g., lab specimen kits, syringes, needles, etc.) that were not distributed by the Vaccine Inventory program.

Do not return COVID-19 vaccines to York Region Public Health. These doses must be documented as wastage on COVaxON and must be reported to York Region Public Health using the Vaccine Reporting Tool (Geocortex).

Wasted or expired COVID-19 vaccine doses, either in punctured or unpunctured vials, should be disposed of at your facility per regulation and guidelines from the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change:

  • Environmental Protection Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. E.19, Regulation 347
  • C-4: The Management of Biomedical Waste In Ontario
  • Registration Guidance Manual for Generators of Liquid Industrial and Hazardous Waste
Vaccine Order Pickup Locations and Hours of Operation

Healthcare professionals will receive a notification by telephone or email once a vaccine order is ready for pick up.  Vaccine orders may be picked up from one of the following locations:

  • 17150 Yonge Street, Newmarket (8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)
  • 50 High Tech Road, Richmond Hill (8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)
  • 24262 Woodbine Avenue, Georgina (8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)
  • 9060 Jane Street, Vaughan (8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)
  • 4261 Highway 7 East, Markham (8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)

Vaccine transport coolers must be pre-conditioned between +2.0°C to +8.0°C before vaccine pickup.  York Region staff will verify that the vaccine transport cooler temperature is within +2.0°C to +8.0°C before releasing a vaccine order.

Vaccine Recall Information

There are no vaccine recalls at this time.

Reporting an Adverse Event Following Immunization (AEFI)

An AEFI is an event or reaction that occurs following immunization that may or may not be caused by the vaccine. Healthcare professionals are required to report AEFIs to York Region Public Health under the Health Promotion and Protection Act.

Consult the Public Health Ontario AEFI Factsheet for more information about AEFIs and when they should be reported.

To report an AEFI, complete a Report of Adverse Event Following Immunization (AEFI) Form and fax the completed form to York Region Public Health at 905-898-5213.  You may also call our Nurse’s Line at 1-877-464-9675, Ext. 73452.

Immunization Clinics

York Region Community and Health Services offer regularly scheduled community immunization clinics where both mandatory and voluntary vaccines are available to York Region school-aged children. For more information, visit Immunization Clinics.

Archive of Notices

Related Resources