Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-vdxz6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-28T07:26:18.451Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Support for Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Requirements among US Healthcare Personnel

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Jürgen Maurer ,
Katharine M. Harris ,
Carla L. Black  and
Gary L. Euler
Jürgen Maurer*
Affiliation:
RAND Corporation, Arlington, Virginia Institute of Health Economics and Management, University of Lausanne, Switzerland
Katharine M. Harris
Affiliation:
RAND Corporation, Arlington, Virginia
Carla L. Black
Affiliation:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia
Gary L. Euler
Affiliation:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia
*
Institute of Health Economics and Management, Route de Chavannes 31, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland ([email protected])
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Objective.

To measure support for seasonal influenza vaccination requirements among US healthcare personnel (HCP) and its associations with attitudes regarding influenza and influenza vaccination and self-reported coverage by existing vaccination requirements.

Design.

Between lune 1 and June 30, 2010, we surveyed a sample of US HCP (n = 1,664) recruited using an existing probability-based online research panel of participants representing the US general population as a sampling frame.

Setting.

General community.

Participants.

Eligible HCP who (1) reported having worked as medical doctors, health technologists, healthcare support staff, or other health practitioners or who (2) reported having worked in hospitals, ambulatory care facilities, long-term care facilities, or other health-related settings.

Methods.

We analyzed support for seasonal influenza vaccination requirements for HCP using proportion estimation and multivariable probit models.

Results.

A total of 57.4% (95% confidence interval, 53.3%–61.5%) of US HCP agreed that HCP should be required to be vaccinated for seasonal influenza. Support for mandatory vaccination was statistically significantly higher among HCP who were subject to employer-based influenza vaccination requirements, who considered influenza to be a serious disease, and who agreed that influenza vaccine was safe and effective.

Conclusions.

A majority of HCP support influenza vaccination requirements. Moreover, providing HCP with information about the safety of influenza vaccination and communicating that immunization of HCP is a patient safety issue may be important for generating staff support for influenza vaccination requirements.

Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2012;33(3):213-221

Type
Original Articles
Information
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology , Volume 33 , Issue 3 , March 2012 , pp. 213 - 221
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Thompson, WW, Shay, DK, Weintraub, E, et al. Mortality associated with influenza and respiratory syncytial virus in the United States. JAMA 2003;289(2):179–186.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
2. Thompson, WW, Shay, DK, Weintraub, E, et al. Influenza-associated hospitalizations in the United States. JAMA 2004;292(11):1333–1340.Google Scholar
3. Thompson, MG, Shay, DK, Zhou, H, et al. Estimates of death associated with seasonal influenza—United States 1976–2007. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2010;59(33):1057–1062.Google Scholar
4. Fiore, AE, Uyeki, T, Broder, K, et al. Prevention and control of influenza with vaccines: recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), 2010. MMWR Recomm Rep 2010;59(RR-8):1–62.Google Scholar
5. Hayward, AC, Harling, R, Wetten, S, et al. Effectiveness of an influenza vaccine programme for care home staff to prevent death, morbidity, and health service use among residents: cluster randomised controlled trial. BMJ 2006;333(7581):1241.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6. Lemaitre, M, Meret, T, Rothan-Tondeur, M, et al. Effect of influenza vaccination of nursing home staff on mortality of residents: a cluster-randomized trial. J Am Geriatr Soc 2009;57(9):1580–1586.Google Scholar
7. Carman, WF, Elder, AG, Wallace, LA, et al. Effects of influenza vaccination of health-care workers on mortality of elderly people in long-term care: a randomised controlled trial. Lancet 2000;355:93–97.Google Scholar
8. Salgado, CD, Farr, BM, Hall, KK, Hayden, FG. Influenza in acute hospital settings. Lancet Infect Dis 2002;2(3):145–155.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
9. Sartor, C, Zandotti, C, Romain, F, et al. Disruption of services in an internal medicine unit due to a nosocomial influenza outbreak. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2002;23(10):615–619.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
10. Harris, KM, Maurer, J, Black, CL, et al. Interim results: influenza A (H1N1) 2009 monovalent and seasonal influenza vaccination coverage among health-care personnel—United States, August 2009–January 2010. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2010;59(12):357–362.Google Scholar
11. American Academy of Pediatrics. Policy statement— recommendation for mandatory influenza immunization of all health care personnel. Pediatrics 126(4):809–815.Google Scholar
12. Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA). IDSA policy on mandatory immunization of health care workers against seasonal and pandemic influenza. http://www.idsociety.org/redirector.aspx?id=15413. Accessed October 1, 2010.Google Scholar
13. National Patient Safety Foundation. National Patient Safety Foundation supports mandatory flu vaccinations for healthcare workers. http://www.npsf.org/pr/pressrel/2009-11-18.php. Accessed October 1, 2010.Google Scholar
14. Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA). Revised SHEA position paper: influenza vaccination of healthcare personnel. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2010;31:987–995.Google Scholar
15. Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. APIC calls for mandatory annual flu immunization of healthcare workers. http://www.apic.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Featured_News_and_Events&CONTENTID=17428&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm. Accessed March 7, 2011.Google Scholar
16. Immunization Action Coalition. Institutional mandates. http://www.immunize.org/honor-roll/. Accessed October 1, 2010.Google Scholar
17. National Influenza Vaccine Summit. Prevent influenza now! http://www.influenzasummit.org/profs_workers.asp. Accessed September 4, 2010.Google Scholar
18. Rakita, RM, Hagar, BA, Crome, P, et al. Mandatory influenza vaccination of healthcare workers: a 5-year study. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2010;31(9):881–888.Google Scholar
19. Babcock, HM, Gemeinhart, N, Jones, M, et al. Mandatory influenza vaccination of health care workers: translating policy to practice. Clin Infect Dis 2010;50:459–464.Google Scholar
20. Poland, GA, Tosh, P, Jacobson, R. Requiring influenza vaccination for health care workers: seven truths we must accept. Vaccine 2005;23:2251–2255.Google Scholar
21. Talbot, TR. Improving rates of influenza vaccination among healthcare workers: educate; motivate; mandate? Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2008;29(2):107–110.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
22. Sullivan, PL. Influenza vaccination in healthcare workers: should it be mandatory? Online J Issues Nurs 2009;15(1). http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJIN/TableofContents/Vol152010/No1Jan2010/Articles-Previous-Topic/Mandatory-Influenza-Vaccination-in-Healthcare-Workers.aspx. Accessed October 1, 2010.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
23. van Delden, JJ, Ashcroft, R, Dawson, A, et al. The ethics of mandatory vaccination against influenza for health care workers. Vaccine 2008;26(44):5562–5566.Google Scholar
24. Isaacs, D, Leask, J. Should influenza immunisation be mandatory for healthcare workers? no. BMJ 2008;337:a2140.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
25. Helms, CM, Polgreen, PM, Should influenza immunisation be mandatory for healthcare workers? yes. BMJ 2008;337:a2142.Google Scholar
26. Anikeeva, O, Braunack-Mayer, A, Rogers, W. Requiring influenza vaccination for health care workers. Am J Public Health 2009;99:24–29.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
27. Steward, AM. Mandatory vaccination of healthcare workers. N Engl J Med 2009;361:2015–2017.Google Scholar
28. The New York Times. Judge halts mandatory flu vaccines for health care workers. October 16, 2009. http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/16/judge-halts-mandatory-flu-vaccines-for-health-care-workers/. Accessed March 7, 2011.Google Scholar
29. Knowledge Networks. List of journals publishing articles based on survey data collected by Knowledge Networks. http://www.knowledgenetworks.com/ganp/docs/KN-Journals-List-3-10.pdf. Accessed December 8, 2010.Google Scholar
30. Fiore, AE, Shay, DK, Broder, K, et al. Prevention and control of seasonal influenza with vaccines: recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), 2009. MMWR Recomm Rep 2009;58(RR-8):1–52.Google Scholar
31. Singleton, J, Santibanez, TA, Lu, PJ, et al. Interim results: influenza A (H1N1) 2009 monovalent vaccination coverage—United States, October-December 2009. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2010;59:1–5.Google Scholar
32. Knowledge Networks. Overview of KnowledgePanel statistical weighting protocol. http://www.knowledgenetworks.com/ganp/docs/KN-Weighting-Synopsis.pdf. Accessed October 1, 2010.Google Scholar
33. Douville, LE, Myers, A, Jackson, MA, Lantos, JD. Health care workers knowledge, attitudes and beliefs regarding mandatory influenza vaccination. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 2010;164(1):33–37.Google Scholar