Study suggests increased flu vaccination among US home healthcare workers could reduce patient illness, hospitalization

Results from a new study advise that escalating influenza vaccination charges among the property healthcare (HHC) workers may perhaps decrease significant respiratory infection-connected hospitalizations between individuals in property healthcare settings. Revealed now in the American Journal of An infection Command (AJIC), the results are amongst the 1st to highlight the affiliation involving HHC personnel flu-vaccination fees and client illness at a national degree.

“Hundreds of thousands of more mature Us citizens receive HHC products and services on an annual foundation, but tiny is known about the influenza vaccination fee amid HHC employees and its effect on these individuals,” explained Jingjing Shang, Ph.D., RN, Heart for Overall health Policy, Columbia University College of Nursing, and first author on the published study. “Our examine provides beneficial new insights that could help tell HHC vaccination guidelines to reduce flu-associated illness and hospitalizations among this populace and could also have implications for HHC vaccination policies relative to COVID-19.”

Through the 2019-2020 influenza season, older people aged 65 and around accounted for 57% of influenza-involved bacterial infections and 75% of influenza-involved deaths in the United States. Prior investigate has revealed that health care workers are just one of the major resources of influenza transmission to geriatric individuals all through the flu time. In 2018, 3.4 million Medicare beneficiaries gained HHC companies.

The review carried out by Dr. Shang and colleagues evaluated the association in between medical center transfers due to respiratory an infection amid HHC individuals and corresponding HHC agencies’ team vaccination policies. The researchers performed a countrywide survey of HHC organizations and then received assessment details for all Medicare beneficiaries who received solutions from these agencies throughout a 60-working day period of time. The normal age of individuals in the examine was 80.3 many years.

Essential results from the analyze incorporate:

• Of the 460 HHC organizations surveyed, 26.2% demanded personnel influenza vaccinations and 71.2% described personnel vaccination fees of 75% or better in the course of the 2017-2018 season.
• Companies requiring team influenza vaccinations had been much more likely to be non-income and healthcare facility primarily based. They had substantially larger employees vaccination charges as in contrast to companies devoid of the necessity (95.5% vs. 61.2%).
• Assuming all HHC organizations adopted guidelines demanding staff influenza vaccinations, the scientists predicted an 11.25% reduction in the amount of clinic transfers due to respiratory infections as when compared to if vaccination prices remained at the position quo (from 1.44% to 1.27%). This reduction would translate into approximately 6,752 prevented hospitalizations for Medicare beneficiaries annually.

“This analyze supplies the very first quantifiable proof that necessitating flu vaccination for HHC workers could significantly lower the load and cost of seasonal flu for more mature Individuals in the HHC setting, as nicely as their relatives users and the U.S. health care program,” stated Linda Dickey, RN, MPH, CIC, FAPIC, and 2022 APIC president.

Presented by
Affiliation for Professionals in Infection Command