Public Health in an Acute Pediatric Hospital Setting: The Family Immunization Clinic in British Columbia Children’s Hospital, 2017–2024
Winnie Fu, Shuzhen Liu, Cecilia Yang, Kim Marty, Manish SadaranganiBACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
In October 2017, BC Children’s Hospital opened the Family Immunization Clinic (FIC)—a permanent immunization clinic within an acute care setting and the first of its kind in Canada. The purpose of this analysis was to describe the characteristics of the populations visiting FIC and evaluate clinic visit reasons over time.
METHODS
This was a retrospective observational study. Contemporaneously collected data were extracted from the clinic database for encounters between October 1, 2017, and September 30, 2024. Study variables of interest included referral information, patient demographics, patient visit summary, and vaccine information. Linear regression was used to examine trends in clinic activities over time.
RESULTS
Across the study period, there were 12 245 patients seen at the general clinic and 5218 at the clinic for influenza vaccines only, in a total of 25 186 and 6791 unique visits, respectively. The most common reason for patients aged 18 years or younger visiting the clinic was routine/catchup immunization (74%) and high-risk populations with additional vaccine considerations (14%). Visits from high-risk populations increased significantly over time (P < .05, β = 2.45). Vaccines were administered by FIC nurses for patients while receiving general anesthesia in 103 visits, and such visits also significantly increased over time (P < .05).
CONCLUSION
Over the study period, FIC has seen an increase in visits from high-risk populations as well as vaccine administration under general anesthesia. Clinical encounters at FIC reflect the changing climate of medical complexity and models an innovative approach to strengthening pediatric health across the region.