Keep Your Own Vaccination Records
It was January, 2019 and I was months away from finishing my Bachelor’s, which meant I was also months away from losing access to my undergrad student healthcare benefits.
I hadn’t seen my small town family doctor for a few years as I had to transfer to the University of Alberta to complete my degree.
Admittedly, pursuing a Bachelor’s of Arts in English with Philosophy minor was a wild 180 degree turn out of my trade as an Automotive Service Technician. My choice of academic path, moreover, lacked vocational value. I knew this going in.
And coming out of school I did another wild 180 degree turn back into my trade. Lets be real — I needed money, so I went back to the job I knew how to do.
Working as an auto mechanic is hard on the body (and the mind to a certain extent). Muscle strains, joint aches, and back and knee pain are common for anyone who’s spent time on the tools. But the scraps, cuts, and gashes, especially on the knuckles, are prevalent day-to-day injuries sustained by blue collar mechanics.
I’ve worked in the trade for well over ten years and have the scar tissue on my knuckles to show it.
Back in the day I remember the ol’ boys of the shop teasing apprentices about contracting tetanus whenever an apprentice’s hand got “opened up” on a rusty, sharp edge. Cuts and puncture wounds are a bacterial breeding ground. So infection was always a worry for me when I was on the tools. My tetanus vaccine was up to date, until I departed for university and forgot about the ol’ boys, the cuts, and the injuries.
According to the CDC, “Tetanus is an infection caused by bacteria called Clostridium tetani.”
Thankfully a tetanus vaccine has been around since 1924.
I was heading back to work in my trade after university, and I felt it was prudent to get a physical and get a tetanus booster shot (a dTap injection every 10 years protects against tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis). I booked a physical and a dTap vaccination through the university’s Health Center.
I did, however, have to pay out of pocket for the dTap vaccine ($52.75). It was available through the university’s pharmacy. The vaccine was delivered by the pharmacy to the campus Health Center.
The physical didn’t reveal anything of immediate concern, and the doctor injected me with the dTap immunization mixture. A attending nurse even game me a paper copy of the vaccine documentation, which I would subsequently misplace.
Both the doctor and the nurse updated a digital immunization log via a computer terminal (or so I thought). At which point the doctor informed me that my measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccination was out of date. I inquired about booking another appointment to receive the MMR vaccine. The doctor explained that it was a “live” vaccine and that Alberta Public Health centers handled those immunizations. I asked if it was something of immediate concern? The doc provided a light shrug and said that I’ll be alright for a bit.
I adopted this doctor’s nonchalant attitude to my expired MMR vaccination status.
Along came another flu season (winter 2019) and another flu shot. But then covid-19 spun itself around the globe and settled in as the harbinger of a pandemic. Unlike the seasonal flu, there wasn’t a covid-19 vaccine readily available for a long while. In the mean time I received yet another flu shot for another flu season (winter 2020), which, as far as flu seasons go, was quietly subdued thanks to covid-19 lock downs and restrictions.
It wasn’t until I booked a flu shot for the winter 2021 flu season that I finally remembered my MMR vaccine status was grossly out of date; I asked the pharmacist I had booked through if I could receive a MMR vaccination at the same time as my flu shot. I was reminded that live vaccines are handled by Alberta Public Health centers.
Over the course of receiving three flu seasons’ worth of flu vaccines and a covid-19 double jab in spring/summer of 2021 not only did I forget my need to update my MMR vaccine, but any health authority I encountered also failed to check the status of my immunization record. Nurses, pharmacists, and doctors all overlooked my complete vaccination history.
Shortly after receiving my winter 2021 flu jab, I booked an appointment with an Alberta Public Health center and graciously accepted a MMR vaccination and another dTap. I was told that there was no recent record of me receiving a dTAP. I shrugged and obeyed the attending nurse. She then rechecked my full vaccine history and reported that everything was now up to date
It wasn’t until after the fact that I checked my paper records and found the lost receipt for the dTap vaccine I paid for out of pocket in early weeks of 2019. I was dispirited to learn that my early 2019 dTap injection was not properly recorded on my Alberta Healthcare record. I had accidently received a dTap vaccine 7 years too early.
I haven’t experienced any adverse symptoms from “doubling up” on a dTap vaccination.
I shared a photo of my paper copy of my recent MMR and dTap immunizations to my Instagram story. A couple of my followers inquired about the injections I received. It would seem I wasn’t the only one with a forgotten vaccination status.
My experience with vaccinations over the last 3 years has softened my reliance on public health records. My 2019 dTap wasn’t properly recorded, and healthcare authorities failed to scrutinize my vaccination history. So I’ve begun documenting as best as I can my own vaccination history.
Meanwhile the ol’ boys I worked with in automotive shops seemed to remember, at the very least, that tetanus was alive and well.
