The March/April 2021 issue of the North Carolina Medical Journal, “Immunizing in North Carolina,” addresses the historical context of vaccination in our state, including areas in which the state has excelled and areas where we can improve. As guest editor Debra Kosko, chair of the North Carolina Immunization Coalition, writes in her summary issue brief, “The timeliness of this edition of the North Carolina Medical Journal could not be more profound, as we immunize North Carolinians with the COVID-19 vaccine to address our greatest public health threat since the 1918 influenza pandemic. An examination of North Carolina’s immunization history and current practices, along with recommendations for change, will better inform our path forward, because success is imperative.”

Click on the links below to read each article.

Issue Brief:

Immunizing North Carolina by Debra A. Kosko

Invited Commentaries and Sidebars:

North Carolina Has Strong Infrastructure to Get Even Better on Childhood Vaccines by Elizabeth S. Hudgins

Immunization Messaging, Communication, and Outreach Amidst the Growing Anti-vaccine Movement by David T. Tayloe, Jr.

We Have Met the Enemy, and He is Us: Falling Childhood Immunization Rates by Peter J. Morris

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Administration of Adult Vaccinations by Susan Corbett

Sidebar: North Carolina’s Process for Developing Our COVID-19 Vaccine Plan by Amanda Fuller Moore, Elizabeth Cuervo Tilson, Charlene A. Wong

Vaccine Hesitancy in North Carolina: The Elephant in the Room? By Lavanya Vasudevan, Emmanuel Walter, Geeta Swamy

Sidebar: Raising the Voice of Vaccines: A Community Approach in Western North Carolina by Ellis Vaughan

Sidebar: A Rare Indication: Immunization Exemptions in North Carolina by Gerri L. Mattson

Pharmacists: Vaccine Heroes Among Non-physician Providers by Ouita Gatton

Vaccine Development: Steps to Approval of an Investigational Vaccine by Emmanuel B. Walter, M. Anthony Moody

Tar Heel Footprints in Health Care: Sam Katz by Coleen K. Cunningham

From the NCIOM:

North Carolina Child Health Report Card 2021

Correspondence:

Involuntary Civil Commitment: Time for Another Pendulum Swing? By Joseph B. Williams

A Call to Action: Renewing the Call for Public Health Advocacy Against Nuclear Weapons by Scott Alan Baker, Terrence Clark, Bert Crain, Mary Olson, Lewis Patrie, Leslie Poplawski, Dot Sulock

Original Articles:

Missed Opportunities for Prevention of Sudden Death by Aamir Husain, Elham A. Masoudi, Mojtaba Mirzaei, Golsa Joodi, Murrium I. Sadaf, Feng-Chang Lin, Ross J. Simpson, Jr.

Impact of Hurricane Matthew on Diabetes Self-Management and Outcomes by Kevin R. Travia, Anna R. Kahkoska, Daria Igudesman, Katherine J. Souris, Cherry Beasley, Elizabeth J. Mayer-Davis