Articles
A vaccine fridge alarm does not automatically mean every vaccine is lost. The temperature matters, but so does the length of time the vaccines were outside the safe range.
If your vaccine fridge goes outside the safe range, do not guess, do not keep using the stock, and do not throw it out. Isolate the vaccines, download the temperature data, and get advice from the correct authority before using or discarding anything.
“Strive for 5” is not just a catchy phrase. It gives vaccine fridges a buffer between too cold and too warm, helping protect vaccines from freezing at one end and heat exposure at the other.
A vaccine can be damaged by freezing without looking frozen. The Shake Test can help detect freeze damage in some specific aluminium-adjuvanted vaccines, but it is not a general test for every vaccine and should not replace your cold chain breach process.
A plain-English summary of what Australia’s Strive for Five guidelines require for vaccine temperature monitoring.