Hep B

     Here's a table that can help you figure out where you stand with respect to the Hep-B Series of vaccinations. You must complete and document your immunity BEFORE you can go to your clinical externship, so please use this tool to figure out where you stand. 

Hep B and Externship Eligibility

--Were you born before 1991 in the US?
--Are you from a country that does not immunize all infants against Hepatitis B (HBV)?
--Have you or your parents ever refused immunization against Hep B for any reason? 
     If you answered "Yes" to any of these questions, you may have to wait as much as eight months for a clinical externship site (if available). 
     In a "best-case scenario," it takes nearly 8 months to complete the Hepatitis B vaccination series, but it can take up to 16 months if the first series is not successful.
       Everyone in any Allied Health Program must complete this series and submit a titer demonstrating immunity for approval before becoming eligible to participate at a clinical externship site (if applicable). 

Here's why: The series itself takes six months to complete. Then it takes the body about 30 days to develop immunity to Hepatitis B.

Step in the Series	Timeline
First Shot	Today (1 day)
Second Shot	30 days after the 1st shot
Third Shot	150 days after the second shot
Hep B Titer	30 days after the 3rd shot
Titer Results	7 days after the titer is drawn
Confirmation of results by Certified Background	48 hours after submission for approval
Total	220 days after the 1st shot!

     220 days is more than 7 months and that assumes that there will be no delays or problems. If you don't develop immunity to the virus, you will have to repeat the Hep B vaccination series, which will require another 7 to 8 months!