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Influenza vaccination rate among emergency department personnel: a survey of four teaching hospitals

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 May 2015

Inderpal Saluja ,
Karl D. Theakston  and
Janusz Kaczorowski
Inderpal Saluja*
Affiliation:
Department of Emergency Medicine, Grand River Hospital, Kitchener, Ont.
Karl D. Theakston
Affiliation:
Division of Emergency Medicine, University of Western Ontario, London, Ont. and University Campus, Department of Emergency Medicine, London Health Sciences Centre, London, Ont.
Janusz Kaczorowski
Affiliation:
Department of Family Medicine, Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ont.
*
Department of Emergency Medicine, Grand River Hospital, 835 King St. West, Kitchener ON N2G 1G3; [email protected]

Abstract

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Objectives:

To determine influenza vaccination rates and attitudes toward vaccination among emergency department health care workers at 4 Ontario teaching hospitals.

Methods:

During the influenza season of 1999–2000 a confidential 28-item survey was distributed to emergency physicians and residents, nurses, respiratory therapists, and other allied health care workers at the emergency departments of 4 London, Ontario teaching hospitals.

Results:

Of 426 surveys distributed, 343 were returned, for an overall response rate of 80.5%. The mean age of respondents was 38.5 years (standard deviation = 8.3), 74.3% were female, and 86.6% were non-smokers. The overall vaccination rate was 37.0% (95% confidence interval, 31.9%–42.4%). Vaccination rates were 45.9% for respiratory therapists, 35.3% for emergency physicians and residents, 34.5% for nurses and 27.1% for other allied health care workers (p = 0.083). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that age ≥41 and a chronic medical condition were positively associated with influenza vaccination (p < 0.05). Close to one-third of respondents (28.3%) believed that adverse affects were common, 51.6% believed vaccination was effective, 52% would support a program to improve vaccination rates among emergency department staff, and 24.4% would support mandatory vaccination for this population. Only 26.8% believed that patients were at increased risk of contracting influenza from emergency department staff, but 58.3% perceived that emergency department staff were at increased risk of contracting influenza through exposure to patients.

Conclusions:

In this study, only 37% of emergency department health care workers were immunized against influenza, with chronic illness and older age being the only 2 significant correlates. Strategies to improve emergency department health care worker attitudes toward influenza vaccination for themselves and to increase vaccination rates for this population should be developed.

Keywords

influenzavaccinationhealth care workerspersonnel, emergency departmentpreventioninfluenzapandemicepidemicsurveycross-sectional studiesemergency serviceshospital
Type
EM Advances • Innovations en MU
Information
Canadian Journal of Emergency Medicine , Volume 7 , Issue 1 , January 2005 , pp. 17 - 21
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians 2005

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