Record Breaking One Day Mass Drive-Through Flu Vaccine Program

Background:  Kaiser Permanente in San Diego County services approximately 500,000 members over a geographical area of 60 square miles. In order to successfully immunize the population various methods have been used. For the 2010-2011 influenza season a large scale offsite drive through flu vacci-center vaccinated over 6,200 patients. This occurred in an 8 hour period setting the Guinness World Record.

Setting:  Centrally located in the middle of San Diego County, the parking lot of the local professional football stadium (Qualcomm Stadium) was used. This afforded the capability to have a large traffic pattern footprint.

Population:  Kaiser Permanente offered flu vaccines at no cost to members greater than 9 years old. Children under 9 years old were directed to the local medical office building less than one mile away. Non-members greater than 18 years old were offered flu vaccines at a minimal cost and provided by an outside vendor.

Project Description:  A multidisciplinary team met for 8 weeks to discuss traffic patterns, staffing, supply chain, refrigerated storage of vaccine, volunteers, competencies, permits, security, advertising, and vendors. Volunteer licensed and unlicensed managers, physicians and local students staffed the one day event. A mandatory Webex training session was provided for all participants.

Results/Lessons Learned:  Kaiser Permanente successfully immunized a large population in one location without patients leaving their vehicle. Having a drive through option was a convenient method of vaccination for the elderly and disabled patients. Lessons learned include staging a large offsite event, cost analysis of per member per shot compared to traditional means, and the use of volunteer managers vs. paid hourly staff.