Pre-Nursing school immunization catastrophe!

[DisneyNurseGal]

I want other people to know what happened to me, so the same does not happen for them!

When I received my nursing school admission, [of course] there was a long list of immunizations that I had to obtain before school started. I am 38 years old, so who knows where my shot records are from when I was a child, and I wasn't going to pay for the titers so I went to my local health department and sat down with a nurse, showed her my list of shots, and we came up with a plan to get them all done.

I couldn't get all the shots at once because of cost and because some of the shots had to have multiple shots spread out over 28 days. The first day I received some of my shots and left with a calendar of when I was to get the rest of them.

Long story short is the nurse messed up. I went to get my (first) TB test yesterday and a different nurse told me that it was too close to my recent MMR. In to get the two TB tests and my second MMR, I would have taken me past the deadline to have everything done. My school has a zero tolerance for late items. The advisor at my school told me I would have to give up my spot in the program .

We came up with an alternative, for me to get a chest X-ray (ILO the TB test itself). I don't have insurance so this is an expensive option, but I don't have any other choice.

I should have been more educated about my program requirements - I don't blame anyone but myself; hopefully, I can share my knowledge so other people know as well.

[Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP]

I had my PPD as well as the first in the series of MMR, Varicella and Hep B all done on the same day. My second shot of each was done yesterday which was 29 days after the first visit. what exactly happens when you do not separate MMR and the PPD by 28 days?

You can give and read the PPD any time before or on the same day as MMR. However, theoretically, if you do it the other way around, the MMR can blunt a positive PPD. This is also true for other live vaccines such as varicella.

[Indy, LPN, LVN]

I was in the same boat with shot records; I started with PPD and titers drawn on the same day. A month or so later (they scheduled it for me) I went back and was told basically I needed all of it redone except the Hep B, so I had a whole bunch of shots, and then whatever I couldn't tolerate on that day, I went back another month later and had done. By the way, it's really painful to get the tetorifice (don't remember if it was dpt together or just tetorifice) in one arm and the MMR in the other on the same day. Holy cow. And they gave me the varicella in there somewhere, which is just funny 'cause I remember being sick for two weeks with chickenpox in oh, 1975 but hey, titers said get the shot.

I'm sorry you had to go through all that and still get an X-ray. But hey, you got in the program right?

[lifelearningrn, BSN, RN]

Most of the community college programs in my area have a policy like that. By the first day of school you need ALL immunizations/titers- including all the HepB shots (takes like 6 months).. When I get accepted to my university I was terrified I wouldn't be able to get them all done in time. Luckily- they weren't due until several weeks into the semester, and you only need 2 of the 3 hepb shots. I ended up doing the accelerated hepbs and getting everything done quickly, but if it had been one of the other programs I'd researched, I'd have been SOL.

[SHGR, MSN, RN, CNS]

What about a quantiferon gold blood test for TB? Compare the cost to that of a CXR.

[watashi]

I had my physical done at the Student Health center of the school I will be attending. I did my pre-reqs there as well, so I was a currently registered student, but they said they would have done it anyway since I was accepted to start in the fall - they will apparently do anyones pre-school physical. The MMR and Varicella titers were $35 total. I am shocked at what other places are charging. I was going to go to my primary care physician but they didn't have appointments till the fall. I'm really glad now that I tried student health and it worked out.

[tothepointeLVN, LVN]

I am surprised that people who place PPDs on a regular basis don't know that you have to separate a PPD from an MMR by 28 days. Sorry that happened to you.

I didn't know this and I used to place PPD's several times a day when I worked in ambulatory care and I was working for the DHS for my city so you'd think they would tell us.

[Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP]

I didn't know this and I used to place PPD's several times a day when I worked in ambulatory care and I was working for the DHS for my city so you'd think they would tell us.

I used this book as my 'bible' when it came to immunizations. I wouldn't have known had we not had access to it. Guess my point is that IMO every place who does immunizations should have a copy or know where to find one. Tons of valuable info.

Amazon.com: Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases (CDC, Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases) (9780017066091): Centers for Disease Control and Preventi: Books

[33762FL]

This is too late to help you, but if anybody else is reading this and in the same situation your high school where you graduated may have your childhood immunization records archived but accessible. I was 30 when I went to NS but got the old records from high school.

[whatdoIdonow?]

I'm curious too about the MMR and PPD not mixing- I wasn't taught that and would love a little education on the subject. Thanks in advance!

[scurbro]

I am lucky that I know exactly where my immunization records are. They are with the hospital I have been with since I was a little girl. So all I have to do is have my Grandmother go to membership to get my records. I will definitely check costs for getting the vaccines though in the Public Health district here. It may be cheaper at my Doctors office, considering its at the school and I do have insurance (Husband is in school currently).

[mariebailey, MSN, RN]

You could get a T-Spot or Quantiferon TB blood test instead. A blood test is performed one time only and can replace two-step testing. Data thus far is limited, but suggests negligible interference of live virus vaccines with the interferon gamma release assays (IGRAs) to date. There is currently no guideline stating that you have to wait after receiving live virus vaccines to do a TB blood test. Updated Guidelines for Using Interferon Gamma Release Assays to Detect Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection --- United States, 2010

[mariebailey, MSN, RN]

MMR (and theoretically other live virus vaccines) may interfere with the body's ability to respond to the tuberculin because it may mildly suppresses the immune response. If MMR is administered