These action plans describe specific activities and strategies designed to help achieve the common vision for the future of immunization supply systems developed by the Cold Chain and Logistics Task Force (led by the United Nations Children’s …

This document describes how project Optimize is collaborating with the Albanian Institute of Public Health to transform the way immunization data and vaccine stock are managed. The two-year collaboration aims to evaluate the benefits of a supply …

This fact sheet describes PATH’s work to identify a set of low-cost technological modifications to domestic refrigerators to prevent the economic loss and unnecessary health risks from compromised vaccine storage conditions.

This article, published in Vaccine, reports on a study of the potency of monovalent oral polio vaccine type 3 kept at ambient temperatures during a polio immunization campaign in Chad. The results of the study show that post-campaign …

This report summarizes a study conducted between March and December 2010 to assess the marginal managerial advantages of using a global system for mobile communications/short message service messaging to transmit vaccine storage temperature data in …

This report summarizes an assessment conducted to understand the structure, scope, and quality of the vaccine supply chain for fee-based immunization services in two locations in Vietnam. It also provides recommendations for strengthening management …

Improper storage and transportation can put vaccine products at risk of degradation. Therefore, an effective vaccine supply chain and logistics system is essential to ensure product quality. In 2009, the government of Thailand launched a pilot …

This report highlights a study that uses a breakeven cost analysis to compare potential prices, wastage rates, and cold chain requirements for various human papillomavirus vaccine presentations. The results of this study provide insight into …

This fact sheet describes how Project Optimize—a collaboration between the World Health Organization and PATH—and their partners are working with countries to model the impact of changes to vaccine logistics and supply systems on vaccine …

This set of 17 training modules, developed for refrigerator technicians, includes handbooks on different types of refrigerators, as well as courses on service and repair techniques, repair work, and stocking spare parts, among others.

This article, published in the journal Vaccine, reports on the development of a new hepatitis B vaccine formulation that is stable against repeated freezing at -20°C and is also stable for 12 months at 37°C. The improved stability of this …

This fact sheet provides information on cold chain and logistics for vaccine delivery, including challenges for managing the cold chain, examples of effective cold chain management, and the costs associated with the cold chain.

This tool is a Microsoft Access-based software tool that helps cold chain managers and public health officers make strategic decisions about managing their cold chain equipment. It is accompanied by a user manual, a set of data collection …

This fact sheet describes PATH’s work to develop and deploy a software tool called Cold Chain Equipment Manager to help vaccination programs manage equipment requirements, forecast equipment needs, and generate procurement lists. It includes a …

This report summarizes findings from a temperature-monitoring study that gathered ambient temperature data during human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine delivery in Vietnam. These data are compared to the known heat stability profile of the HPV vaccine …

Optimize—a collaboration between the World Health Organization and PATH—aims to employ technological and scientific advances by defining ideal specifications for health products and creating a flexible and robust vaccine supply chain …

Keeping heat-sensitive vaccines and other drugs at the right temperature is crucial yet often difficult in areas with limited or no electrical power. This fact sheet describes a response to this challenge, where a group of public- and private-sector …

Project Optimize undertook a cost-comparison case study of five container options for vaccine transport from the national to the regional level in Senegal. This report may be used as a starting point for other country vaccine programs weighing …

Facilitated by project Optimize and conducted by a multidisciplinary group of partners, these landscape analyses highlight ongoing work related to five priority areas that comprise the vision for immunization supply systems in 2020. The analyses …

This article, published in Vaccine, describes an approach to minimize reliance on the proper implementation of the cold chain to protect vaccines from freeze-thaw inactivation. By including PEG 300, propylene glycol, or glycerol in a hepatitis …

This fact sheet describes how PATH and the US Department of Defense (DOD) collaborate to enhance the health of the world’s poorest people and presents a sampling of PATH projects, including work on vaccines to prevent diarrhea and vaccine …

This project Optimize document summarizes a laboratory report on performance testing of four models of domestic refrigerators that are available on the Tunisian market. Project Optimize contracted the tests to demonstrate to the government the …

The Effective Vaccine Management (EVM) initiative provides materials and tools needed to monitor and assess vaccine supply chains and help countries to improve their supply chain performance. This web page provides links to EVM background and …

In 2010, Burkina Faso conducted a country-wide campaign to introduce a new Group A meningococcal conjugate vaccine, MenAfriVac™. Leading up to this effort, the following challenges were successfully managed: (1) conducting a large safety study …

This document provides a literature review of articles about the effects of freezing on vaccine potency of hepatitis B, tetanus toxoid, diphtheria, and pertussis vaccines. Also included is a review of stability data of …