Welcome to the San Diego Immunization Information Website! The Maintenance and Analysis of a Local Immunization Information Website

Why develop a local website? Need identified by the county’s community immunization coalition Respond to community concerns Provide accurate information/local resources Improve access to materials Limited availability of accessible immunization information in Spanish

“a little help from our friends...” Budget issues No funding for a website County Information Technology contract No staff expertise at start Grant application? BarefootSoftware.com Design/construction/development donated Content Development Staff areas of expertise Coalition - review, editing, evaluation, translation

English sections online January 2002 Parents and Community “Check your child’s record” School Staff Child Care Providers Health Care Providers Spanish sections activated January 2003 Parents and Community Family Child Care San Diego Immunization Registry Section added November 2003 Link to web-enabled registry May 2004

Bienvenidos! The Community and Family and Child Care Providers sections are also available in Spanish San Diego’s population is 28% Hispanic, and our birth cohort is 45% Hispanic We sit on the U.S.-Mexico border, and there were 56.6 million legal border crossings in 2002 Many families live and work on both sides of the border The website receives hits from a variety of Spanish speaking nations

San Diego Regional Immunization Registry (SDIR) Registry section added to the website in 2003 Describes the registry/answers FAQ’s/provides information on technical and legal requirements for participation and how to enroll User’s manual added when web-enabled SDIR went online in April Password-secured access to SDIR from website/SDIR users can link to website for VISs, users manual and other information

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Development Challenges of web design “by committee” Operates on a commercial host Services include usage statistics Staff researched and wrote section content/other staff reviewed Graphic design sponsored by CA DHS Designs reviewed/final design selected by coalition Spanish sections edited and reviewed by coalition and staff; coalition and staff provided translation

Maintenance Staff received training in website maintenance/development/techniques Web design software purchased by program Program staff and coalition contribute ideas and resources Staff and coalition partners provide photos!

Staying up-to-date New resources, articles, links are brought to program manager Sections assigned to staff for regular review Staff review or write new sections as needed All changes pass through approval process Computer services manager makes actual changes

Results averaged 3200 hits per day last quarter Usage statistics allow the Immunization Program to track specific educational interventions and to determine areas of most interest to consumers Availability of site allows quick posting of information directed to the public/specific audiences

Conclusion---it has been worth it! has allowed better communication of immunization information and resources to the local community, and provided an economical venue for making materials and messages accessible to partner organizations.

For more information: Kathleen Worthing Gustafson, MPH San Diego County Immunization Program P.O. Box (P511B) San Diego, CA fax Or log on to