For October, we checked with Nancy Bernard to make sure private schools know about the 2018-19 Required Immunizations and to get answers to some common questions related to school vaccination reporting and record keeping.  

Nancy says:

YES!  Washington State law requires all public and private schools with any students in grades kindergarten through 12 to complete and file an Immunization Status Report by November 1 of each school year. WAC 246-105-060

If your School Information System (SIS) has the ability, you may create a .csv spreadsheet file from the SIS and email it to oicpschools@doh.wa.gov

• Label your spreadsheet with the OSPI Building code as the first 4 spaces of the title.  If you are reporting for more than one school in the same spreadsheet, use “MULTI” in the first 5 spaces of your title.  You can use any naming convention you like after that.
• Check your spreadsheet to make sure the data is properly formatted for your report.
• Make sure the .csv spreadsheet report has information for ALL of the fields on the School Immunization Report form for K-12 schools: School report form (PDF)

For preschools and childcare centers, print then complete and submit this form.

Nancy says:

You can download the Required School Immunization pdf file that outlines what parents need to know for their kids at each grade level.  This chart outlines what vaccinations are Required for Schools Attendance which is useful for posting for school staff.

For preschools, look up your child’s age on this chart to learn the recommended schedule for age and dose of vaccinations.

The school, preschool, and child care immunization requirements currently refer to the 2017 immunization schedule, so nothing has changed for this school year.

Nancy says:

The School Module is a feature of the Washington State Immunization Information System (IIS), an online registry of immunization records for people of all ages in Washington State. The School Module is a free, secure, and easy-to-use web-based tool that allows users to track and manage student and school-level immunization information.

School districts, private schools, and early learning centers must have a nurse or licensed healthcare provider who is able to sign the Information Sharing Agreement. If you do not have a nurse or other healthcare provider on staff you may use a volunteer nurse or licensed health care provider who is willing to provide oversight of School Module use.

With the School Module, schools can access existing immunization records in the IIS entered by healthcare providers, providing them with information they need to conduct important immunization work. The goal of this system is to improve compliance rates with immunization requirements and to support healthy, well-vaccinated students.

Getting Access to the School Module

• Use the printable School Module Onboarding Checklist to guide you through each step of the onboarding process.
• Talk to your school administrators and IT staff about the School Module. Use these Talking Points for School Nurses to help guide the conversation.
• Once your school is ready to move forward, the first step to getting access is to complete the WA IIS Information Sharing Agreement. Both the school district nurse and superintendent, need to sign the Information Sharing Agreement.
• Fill out a School Module Sharing Agreement Cover Sheet to accompany your sharing agreement.
• Mail the Cover Sheet and Sharing Agreement, with the original signatures, to:
  Washington State Department of Health
  Office of Immunization and Child Profile
  PO Box 47843
  Olympia, WA 98504-7843
• Directory Upload (Optional) – Department of Health offers an initial directory upload when a school or school district first comes onboard the School Module. This eliminates the need for school staff to manually build their school rosters by linking each student with their school. If you are interested in a directory upload, please send us an email at schoolmodule@doh.wa.gov.

The Department of Health is currently rolling out the School Module to schools across Washington State. If you are interested in getting access or have a question about the School Module, please contact us by email at schoolmodule@doh.wa.gov.