Cold chain emergencies

Use this information if your vaccine fridge temperature is outside +2.0°C to +8.0°C, your fridge thermometer is having a malfunction, or you have a power failure.

Report it to Public Health

905-688-8248 or 1-888-505-6074 ext. 7396

Vaccine Preventable Disease program · Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 4:15 p.m., except statutory holidays

Report within 24 hours or by the next business day, as required by the Ontario Ministry of Health. Call ahead if your office is expecting a planned power failure.

Follow these steps

1
Stop using the vaccine right away.
2
Leave the vaccine in the fridge and keep it quarantined (do not use). Do not assume it is wasted
3
Record the time and the current, maximum and minimum temperatures; then clear the thermometer.
4
Call Public Health to report the cold chain incident and receive further instructions.

Select the most appropriate for your situation

Temperature is out of range

Any reading below +2.0°C or above +8.0°C

Thermometer malfunctions

If you're noticing "LL.L" or "HH.H" readings, or if you're witnessing quick drastic or extreme fluctuations to the temperatures

Power is out

Current, recent or planned power failure

If the temperature is out of range

1
Bag the vaccine and label it "DO NOT USE." Keep the bag in your monitored vaccine fridge.
2
Record extra current, maximum and minimum temperatures, accompanied with the time. Clear the maximum and minimum temperatures after recording.
3
If Public Health asks, fax the Vaccine Inventory and Return Form (PDF) and your current four-week temperature log to 905-688-4667.
4
Public Health will tell you which vaccine you can keep using and which must be returned.

Use the out of range temperatures - cold chain troubleshooting checklist (PDF) to help find the cause.

If the fridge thermometer malfunctions

1
Bag the vaccine and label it "DO NOT USE." Keep the bag in your monitored vaccine fridge.
2
Place your transport thermometer in the fridge.
3
Record extra current, maximum and minimum temperatures from both thermometers, accompanied with the time. Clear the maximum and minimum temperatures after recording.
4
If Public Health asks, fax the Vaccine Inventory and Return Form (PDF) and your current four-week temperature log to 905-688-4667.
5
Public Health will tell you which vaccine you can keep using and which must be returned.

Use the out of range temperatures - cold chain troubleshooting checklist (PDF) to help find the cause.

If the power is out

Get your transport cooler ready with frozen ice packs, fridge blankets and your digital transport thermometer. Leave the vaccine in the fridge while the temperature stays between +2.0°C and +8.0°C. Your fridge thermometer display should be readable from outside the fridge, so you don't need to open the door to take a reading.

If the power stays off or the temperature starts climbing, choose one option:

Option 1

Move the vaccine to a working, monitored fridge

The fridge must be between +2.0°C and +8.0°C and have power or a back-up generator.

  • Record your fridge temperatures and the time before removing vaccine
  • If using a transport cooler for transport or for temporary storage of vaccines, ensure the cooler is between +2.0°C and +8.0°C and clear the transport thermometer before packing vaccine. Follow the images in the “How to condition a cooler for vaccine transport” document. Contact Public Health if you don’t have a copy.
  • Don't let ice packs touch the vaccine or thermometer probe as vaccine has low to zero tolerance to freezing temperature. Keep the thermometer display outside the cooler and the probe in the middle.
  • Record the current, maximum and minimum temperatures after packing the vaccine, during transport and on arrival. Clear the thermometer after each recording. Hourly recordings are advised when storing vaccine in a transport cooler and / or uninspected vaccine fridge. Keep the transport thermometer with the vaccine at all times.
  • Pharmacies cannot temporarily store vaccine for other health care providers

During business hours, you can bring vaccine to Public Health (Thorold location only) for temporary storage.

Option 2

Keep the vaccine in your fridge

If you can't move it:

  • Put ice packs in the fridge, away from the vaccine
  • Keep the fridge door closed as much as possible
  • Keep the room cool, for example, close the blinds
  • Record extra current, maximum and minimum temperatures, accompanied with the time (i.e. every 30 minutes during the outage, if possible). Clear the maximum and minimum temperatures after recording.
  • Note the time the fridge went above +8.0°C and when you leave the office

When the power comes back

1
Record the time and current, maximum and minimum temperatures when the power comes back, then clear the thermometer. Once the fridge is back between +2.0°C and +8.0°C, record and clear the temperatures again.
2
Keep the vaccine in a monitored fridge.
3
Call Public Health for direction on vaccine stability. Don't give any vaccine until you hear back.

Don't assume the vaccine is wasted, and don't decide stability yourself. Public Health will tell you what can still be used.