Influenza Vaccination—A Call For Arms: Roll Up or Mask Up
Year: 2015
Type: article
Abstract: Background. Annual influenza vaccination has been recommended for healthcare workers (HCWs) to reduce influenza associated morbidity in healthcare settings. In 2013, the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) mandated masking of HCWs not vaccinated against influenza. A year prior to the requirement, masking for those not vaccinated was required at some of the hospitals in our health system. In the hospitals that masked, the vaccination rate was 59% compared to 63% in our other hospitals where masking was not required. We learned that a comprehensive vaccination strategy must rely on more than requiring surgical masks for HCWs who decline to get vaccinated. Methods. Plan-Do-Study-Act methodology was used to address barriers to HCW acceptance of influenza vaccination at our seven hospitals. Strategies to improve vaccination rates included: a goal of greater than 90% was adopted as a priority by our Quality Leadership Council; use of push and pull pods to make vaccine readily available; visible top-level commitment, including executives and members of the governing board, to promote and provide vaccination; partnership between labor and management to create a shared sense of purpose and commitment to the vaccination program; weekly monitoring of HCW vaccination rates; and recognition when goals were met. HCWs were alerted to count-down days to having to mask if not vaccinated. Education about the benefits and safety of vaccination was provided. To reduce anxiety, previously vaccinated HCWs served as advocates to those getting vaccinated for the first time. Results. The HCW vaccination rate significantly increased from 60% in the 2012-2013 influenza season to 91% in the 2014-2015 season (p < 0.00001). This is also significantly higher than national and NYSDOH reported rates (p < 0.0001). Increased vaccination rates in all categories of HCWs were noted, with the greatest increase seen in licensed independent practitioners. Conclusion. A clearly defined vaccination goal, with visible top-level commitment, was important to overcome challenges related to vaccine efficacy and achieve high influenza vaccination rates. Sharing of vaccination data in multiple venues fostered a shared sense of purpose between labor and management and a sense of pride as vaccination rates improved. Disclosures. All authors: No reported disclosures.
Source: Open Forum Infectious Diseases
Language: English
Subfield: Health
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $4,053
OpenAlex ID: W2292215837