Important COVID-19 Information
Our Statement on COVID-19
COVID-19 is an unprecedented challenge for our communities and nation. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who has suffered the loss of family members or friends, and to those that are struggling to recover from the illness.
We are very grateful for the bravery, sacrifice, and hard work of healthcare workers, many of whom Sentry MD is honored to have served over the years. They are the soldiers in this war. To support them, we have made contributions to the American Nurses Foundation and Doctors Without Borders. Both of these organizations have launched initiatives in the United States to provide critically needed resources on the front lines of the pandemic.
Sentry MD stands ready to do its part. We are equipped to track COVID-19 viral tests, immunizations, and antibody tests and will work with you on a solution that meets your needs. Daily, we follow the news, FDA and CDC announcements regarding the development and deployment of tests and vaccines. To help us interpret this information, we have hired a Harvard trained infectious disease expert, who is also an advisor to the World Health Organization. We are also exploring relationships with telehealth and lab companies to see if we can assist our student and employee members gain access to tests and vaccines in a timely and efficient manner as they become available.
The Covid-19 Vaccine's Impact on Compliance
UPDATE: COVID-19 Vaccines may now be co-administered with other vaccines without regard to timing.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now recommend the following:
Co-administration With Other Vaccines
COVID-19 vaccines were previously recommended to be administered alone, with a minimum interval of 14 days before or after administration of any other vaccines. This was out of an abundance of caution and not due to any known safety or immunogenicity concerns. However, substantial data have now been collected regarding the safety of COVID-19 vaccines currently authorized by FDA for use under EUA. Although data are not available for COVID-19 vaccines administered simultaneously with other vaccines, extensive experience with non-COVID-19 vaccines has demonstrated that immunogenicity and adverse event profiles are generally similar when vaccines are administered simultaneously as when they are administered alone.
COVID-19 vaccines and other vaccines may now be administered without regard to timing. This includes simultaneous administration of COVID-19 vaccines and other vaccines on the same day, as well as coadministration within 14 days. It is unknown whether reactogenicity of COVID-19 vaccine is increased with coadministration, including with other vaccines known to be more reactogenic, such as adjuvanted vaccines or live vaccines. When deciding whether to coadminister another vaccine(s) with COVID-19 vaccines, providers should consider whether the patient is behind or at risk of becoming behind on recommended vaccines, their risk of vaccine-preventable disease (e.g., during an outbreak or occupational exposures), and the reactogenicity profile of the vaccines.
If multiple vaccines are administered at a single visit, administer each injection in a different injection site. For adolescents and adults, the deltoid muscle can be used for more than one intramuscular injection.
Link: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/info-by-product/clinical-considerations.html#Coadministration
Tuberculosis Testing Should Continue to be Delayed 4 Weeks After Completion of COVID-19 Series
COVID-19 vaccines should not be delayed because of testing for TB infection. Testing for TB infection with one of the immune-based methods, either the tuberculin skin test (TST) or an interferon release assay (IGRA), can be done before or during the same encounter as COVID-19 vaccination. When testing with TST or IGRA cannot be done at the same time as COVID-19 vaccination, these tests should be delayed ≥4 weeks after the completion of COVID-19 vaccination but generally should not be cancelled.
When considering a tuberculin skin test or interferon-gamma release assay:
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The TST is not expected to have an effect on the safety or the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccine. IGRAs are blood tests and, thus, do not affect vaccine safety or effectiveness.
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The reliability of a positive TST or IGRA result after COVID-19 vaccination is expected to be the same as without the vaccination. COVID-19 vaccination is not expected to cause false positive results from a TB test that is done at the same encounter as or after COVID-19 vaccination.
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The reliability of a negative TST or IGRA result after COVID-19 vaccination has not been studied.
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The TST is not a vaccine. The guidance for separating other vaccines from COVID-19 vaccination by at least 2 weeks in time does not apply to the TST because the TST is not a vaccine.
Updated 5/14/21
You can reference this information in detail on the CDC website here.