Tool tells how to catch up missed vaccines

ATLANTA, May 21 (UPI) -- A software tool helps pediatricians, parents and healthcare workers determine how to adjust complex childhood immunization schedules, U.S. researchers say.

Children commonly miss recommended times to receive vaccines, but once a child falls behind in the vaccination schedule, healthcare professionals are left to figure out when it's appropriate to give any missed vaccines and any future vaccines.

Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology created a downloadable tool that allows parents and pediatricians to ensure the missed vaccines and future vaccines are administered without violating guidelines.

"Physicians have been telling us for years that they needed a computerized program to tell them when to give vaccines after a child misses scheduled immunizations," Larry Pickering, executive secretary of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Now this tool is available for healthcare professionals and parents to use and they are excited to use it."

The software, designed by Pinar Keskinocak and graduate student Faramroze Engineer, is available at the CDC Web site -- www.cdc.gov/vaccines/scheduler/catchup.htm.