Creating an Influenza Vaccination Toolkit for Healthcare Settings

Learning Objectives for this Presentation:
By the end of the presentation, hospital employees charged with ensuring that hospital staff receive an annual influenza vaccination will know how to create a customized influenza toolkit.

Background:
National estimates indicate that up to 40 percent of healthcare workers don't get an annual influenza immunization. Healthcare entities are now more focused on getting their employees immunized against influenza, in part because of new Joint Commission requirements. A toolkit serves as a reminder of the importance of employees receiving an annual influenza vaccination, and makes accomplishing this task easier.

Setting:
Our effort focused on hospital settings, but our tool kit is also appropriate for other healthcare settings, including long-term care facilities.

Population:
Employees, physicians, and volunteers working in healthcare settings.

Project Description:
The Colorado Influenza and Pneumococcal Alert Coalition (CIPAC) has for the last two years created and distributed an influenza toolkit designed to help hospital employees that are charged with ensuring that hospital staff get their annual influenza vaccination. In addition to the toolkit, CIPAC contacts each hospital to offer additional assistance with their influenza vaccination efforts.

Results/Lessons Learned:
We have not yet completed our analysis of the project's impact, but will be able to present our complete analysis by the March conference. Anecdotal feedback has been entirely positive, with many hospital infection control nurses proactively contacting CIPAC to ensure they are on the distribution list for the tool kit. In addition, CIPAC has been contacted by other states interested in implementing this program.