OSWEGO – The maternity unit at Oswego Hospital was recently recognized as one of the top 25 hospitals in the state for its work in providing vaccinations for hepatitis B.
A certificate from the New York State Department of Health Bureau of Immunization Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program was presented to Oswego Hospital staff by the Oswego County Health Department.
The certificate states that the hospital “achieved a 90 percent or higher coverage rate in 2015 for the birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine and also passed its most recent lot quality assurance visit.”
“The recognition honors the hospital’s work in preventing the transmission of the hepatitis B virus during birth,” said Jodi Martin, supervising public health nurse with the Oswego County Health Department. “A study of the hospital showed that it was 100 percent in compliance with all requirements for reporting the status of the virus in pregnant women and babies.”
The review also revealed that the hospital provided more than 90 percent of newborns with the recommended birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine.
“The maternity team at Oswego Hospital is well-deserving of this honor,” said Oswego County Public Health Director Jiancheng Huang. “It is so important for babies to get a good health start and the hospital’s maternity unit is a key part of that success.”
The hepatitis B virus is one of the most common and serious of liver infections.
Those infected are often unaware that they have it and unknowingly pass it on to others through close contact.
Transmission occurs through contact with blood and other body fluids of an infected person and can occur during childbirth.
For more information about hepatitis B or other vaccine preventable illnesses, contact the Oswego County Health Department at 315-349-3547.
To learn more about the New York State Department of Health Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program, go to
https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/hepatitis/hepatitis_b/perinatal/
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