References

Chiodini J Safe storage and handling of vaccines. Nurs Stand. 2013; 28:(25)45-52 https://doi.org/10.7748/ns2014.02.28.25.45.e8486

National Patient Safety Agency. Vaccine cold storage. 2010. http://www.nrls.npsa.nhs.uk/alerts/?entryid45=66111 (accessed 25 September 2024)

Safe storage of medicines

02 October 2024
Volume 29 · Issue 10

Abstract

The correct storage of vaccines is vital to ensuring that they work effectively and keep patients safe. In this article the author explains how to ensure compliance with regulations without placing an undue burden on community nursing staff.

The importance of having an effectively vaccinated population has been brought into stark relief in recent years by the COVID-19 pandemic and the increase in cases of childhood diseases, such as measles and whooping cough. Every vaccine counts—from a financial as well as a public health perspective—so it is vital that none are wasted. The way we store vaccines (and other temperature sensitive medicines) is critical to ensuring that they work effectively and keep our communities safe.

These products are considered part of the ‘cold chain’, which means that they must be kept in stable refrigerated conditions at temperatures between 2°C and 8°C, from the point of manufacture until they are administered to the patient. Storing cold chain medicines outside this temperature range can make them less effective.

Vaccines in particular contain live organisms from viruses and bacteria, which gradually biodegrade over time. A temperature too high or too low can irreversibly speed up their natural loss of potency, rendering manufacturer ‘use by’ dates useless. The vaccine might then fail to create the desired immune response, putting patients and the wider community at risk.

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