COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit: Operational Considerations for Healthcare Practitioners

Our COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Guides bring to the front lines of the vaccination effort operational strategies assembled in a single resource to address potential efficiency gaps while maintaining safety and quality. The goal is to help build public trust, get more shots in arms and end the pandemic.

U.S. COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit:

The US COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit was first published in January 2021. With new and updated vaccine information, the toolkit has been revised to help ensure frontline practitioners have the most updated, relevant COVID-19 vaccine related information. As of November 2021, the toolkit has been revised to include information regarding booster doses, pediatric Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine preparation and beyond-use dating in pre-drawn syringes, and ways to avoid mix-ups with other vaccines.

International COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Guide:

USP’s International COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Guide debuted in July 2021 and was recently updated in January 2022. This guide was developed based on the core concepts described in the USP COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit and provides information related COVID-19 vaccines currently used internationally. The guide includes:

Operational considerations around handling, storage, and transport of the different COVID-19 vaccines utilized in geographies outside the U.S., including AstraZeneca, Corbevax, Sinopharm, Sputnik V, Novovax, etc.
Mitigating strategies to avoid vaccine mix-ups
Supplemental content including a Visual Inspection Guide to help identify falsified COVID-19 Vaccines, as well as references to CDC and WHO toolkits and catalogues

Get the COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit & International Guide

Complete the form for immediate access to the US Toolkit and supporting resources, and the International Guide.

Since its initial release in January 2021, the Toolkit has helped stakeholders:

Accelerate the pace of vaccinations
Prevent waste while maintaining quality
Build confidence in becoming a vaccine administrator
Increase available doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine alone by an estimated 20 percent in the U.S.

More than 76,000 COVID-19 vaccine network providers across the U.S. at large chain and independent pharmacies, hospitals and public health entities have received the Toolkit.

In the news:

As Vaccination Issues Have Emerged So Have Answers – Chain Drug Review
In-Depth: Two Ways the U.S. Could Accelerate Vaccinations – ABC 10 News San Diego
Frontline Health Care Workers Are Helping to Shape COVID-19 Vaccine Toolkit Resources – Pharmacy Times
COVID-19 Vaccine Handling: Maximizing Doses and Public Confidence – American Nurse
Getting More Vaccines in Arms: Trust and Efficiencies – National Consumers League
Healthcare Providers Can Use Several Strategies to Maximize COVID-19 Vaccines – Reuters Health/Medscape

The COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit is an informational resource and is intended to complement other available resources. In the U.S. these include the following resources as well as those provided by the CDC, U.S. FDA, vaccine manufacturers, and state and local departments of health:

For more information, please contact HealthcareQuality@usp.org.

For over 200 years, USP has worked to build trust where it matters most: in the world's medicines, dietary supplements and foods. Through our rigorous science and the public quality standards we set, USP helps protect patient safety and improve the health of people around the world. Excerpted USP-NF Standards referenced in the USP COVID-19 Vaccine Handling Toolkit are available here.

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