Flu Vaccination Up Among Healthcare Workers

Jaimie Oh -

During the 2010-11 season, 63.5 percent of healthcare personnel reported receiving influenza vaccination, according to the most recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This figure demonstrates growing levels of influenza vaccination. Over the past 10 years, less than 50 percent of healthcare personnel received the influenza vaccination each year until the 2009-2010 season. During that season, an estimated 62 percent of healthcare personnel got a seasonal influenza vaccination and an additional 2 percent got only the H1N1 influenza vaccination.

 

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Other key findings from the CDC report include the following:

•    Influenza vaccination among healthcare personnel by mid-Nov. 2011 is approximately 7 percentage points higher than healthcare personnel influenza vaccination by mid-Nov. 2010.
•    Among unvaccinated healthcare personnel who did not intend to get the influenza vaccine, the most common reason reported for non-vaccination was a mindset that influenza vaccines don't work.
•    Influenza vaccination coverage was higher among physicians and dentists (77.6 percent), nurse practitioners and physician assistants (76.8 percent) and nurses (75.7 percent) compared to "other" healthcare personnel, such as allied health professionals and administrative staff (58.7 percent).
•    Influenza vaccination coverage varied by age, ranging from 56.2 percent of healthcare staff aged 18-29 years to 67.8 percent of healthcare staff aged 60 years and older.
•    Influenza vaccination coverage also varied by work setting, from 45.1 percent of healthcare staff working in long-term care facilities to 77.8 percent of healthcare staff working in hospitals.

Related Articles on Infection Control:

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11 Strategies to Address Physician and Staff Resistance to Complying With Infection Control Guidelines

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