Introduction
The health of medical providers is an essential factor that not only reduces the risk of shortage in terms of workers providing healthcare services but also ensures safety for patients. This is why measures should be taken to minimize possible risks in terms of infections and illnesses that can be preventable if the necessary resources and actions are addressed. Influenza is a contagious virus that correlates with multiple adverse effects in regards to the health of the medical provider as well as organizational circumstances such as absenteeism and risks for infecting patients. However, the flu is preventable through yearly vaccination that significantly reduces the chance of being infected. Healthcare workers in Elmhurst, NYC, would benefit from an improvement in the rate of vaccination and contribute to a healthier, safer, and more organized environment in the institution. This paper will exemplify the steps that are to be taken to motivate healthcare workers to take the yearly flu vaccines and assess current technological and evidence-based approaches to the aim to improve the rate of vaccinated healthcare workers at Elmhurst.
Summation of Quality Improvement Initiatives
In order for the goal of the intervention to be achieved, it is essential to form a set of Quality Improvement (QI) initiatives that can be effective in reaching a higher number of vaccinated staff members. The initiatives are to address several factors that are directly linked to the willingness of healthcare providers to participate in vaccination procedures. First, the objective is to improve the level of knowledge of the healthcare workers when it comes to the benefits of vaccination, the vaccine itself, and the risks correlating with the decision to avoid this action. Moreover, a data-based approach is purposed to improve the documentation on the subject. Unvaccinated staff members, a vaccination schedule, and the rate of instances in which flu vaccines have played a key role are to be well-documented and examined. Last but not least, communication and other practical implementation can motivate healthcare providers to follow through with the procedures.
Quality Improvement Measures and Importance
Reducing the risk that correlates with influenza is only possible through preventative measures. The main one is vaccination, which is a major concern since only around 60% of healthcare workers worldwide agree with mandatory flu vaccination (Gualano et al., 2021). Moreover, the federal rate of vaccination is higher than the state one (86% and 55%), which is the primary measure that is to be considered. The rate can, however, improve if the necessary implementations are integrated. A measure is addressing education on the subject is creating education campaigns to improve knowledge on the subject (Neufeind et al., 2020). It is also essential to improve the application of technology in regards to improving vaccine confidence. This can be achieved through the use of educational videos, online campaigns, and data collection and examination techniques (Odone et al., 2021). Since minimizing potential infections is essential for creating a safe and healthy environment, the importance of such implementations is evident.
SMART Goals and Stakeholders
The first SMART goal is improving the uptake of influenza vaccine to 80% by 6/31/2022 through educational measures, management testimonials, and mobile carts implementation at the Elmhurst hospital. The second SMART goal refers to the comparison of immunization rates yearly through data gathering by 6/31/2022. The third SMART goal is implementing a free service of immunization for healthcare workers at the hospital. Last but not least, the fourth SMART goal is reporting on the progress by 12/31/2022.
Tools, Policies, and Resources
The necessary Quality Improvement (QI) requires certain tools that can help achieve the aforementioned SMART goals. The focus is on three primary concepts: education, data, and guidelines. In terms of education, it is essential to improve the knowledge on the subject to improve vaccine confidence. According to researchers, healthcare providers often avoid flu vaccination due to a lack of confidence when it comes to possible side effects and effectiveness (Kwok et al., 2021). Informational campaigns of the benefits of vaccination and how it affects the institution can reduce the adverse overview. A data-driven approach is also essential due to the potential to track individuals who are vaccinated, possible factors facilitating such a result, and track the improvement or regression over the years. Moreover, having strict guidelines through policies is crucial in creating a safer environment. The policies are to consider employee compliance, sponsor free vaccination campaigns to make it more accessible, implement a vaccination day for all healthcare workers, and make an example of vaccine compliance through top management. The necessary resources that are to be allocated in order for the initiatives to be practically applied include individuals with experience in organizing such campaigns and events. However, the data-centered approach requires the hiring of experts that can improve the technological aspect of the intervention.
Advanced Health Information Technology
It is crucial to consider the importance of Health Information Technology (HIT) in implementing quality improvement measures to facilitate a high rate of flu vaccine compliance among staff members at the Elmhurst hospital. Several concepts directly correlate with technological involvement, including informational campaigns, communication with healthcare workers, and data collection and examination. First and foremost, it is essential to highlight the usefulness of HIT when it comes to spreading information about the vaccines themselves, their benefits, or how to get vaccinated safely and quickly. One example would be implementing a free vaccination day at the Elmhurst hospital. Researchers point out that the study they have conducted in regards to factors facilitating vaccination for healthcare providers is the accessibility of the location. Thus, according to the articles, physicians and nurses are more likely to take the flu shot if it is performed at the institution where they work, unlike the standard procedure of going to a designated facility (Dettori et al., 2021). Such an event can be advertised through technological advancements such as the hospital’s private platform for healthcare workers. Individuals would be able to sign up, learn about the initiative, and access all the necessary informational resources.
Another technological improvement in healthcare that directly correlates with the aim to improve vaccination rates is collecting, storing, and classifying data in regards to the procedures. This is linked to HIT directly since the information is to be technologically processed in a way that individuals viewing it can either identify a pattern or organize the information to find out about the circumstances improving vaccination. An example would be monitoring an increase or decrease in influenza spread after the implementation of a new hospital polity of guidelines. To exemplify the approach, the referral can be the 1995 state law implementation in which hospitals started to offer hospital staff members opportunities to take the influenza vaccine. Based on the data gathered prior to and before the initiative, the mortality rate associated with the disease has decreased by 2.5% and has created a safer environment, especially for elderly workers and people in contact with healthcare workers (Carrera et al., 2021). Such data is important to collect and efficiently analyze for accurate results and comprehensive conclusions through existing technological measures. In case the gathered information shows either an improvement or a regression, the hospital tom management can make further alterations to maximize the positive changes.
Data collection, however, does not necessarily have to do with the aim to measure the rate of vaccination yearly but has a more complex approach. This may correlate with surveys, campaigns, and information gathering on the opinion of the Elmhurst hospital staff members in regards to the influenza vaccine. Healthcare workers can participate in an online survey in regards to specific opinions, factors, and circumstances that wither increase or decrease their confidence in flu shots. The questions illustrated in the online service may range from ones determining the influence of vaccine costs and availability of the service to the personal doubt in the effectiveness of the approach and the doubt in regards to possible side effects. Based on the results that will also be technologically determined through certain algorithms, the main facilitators of vaccines and the factors that decrease confidence will be identified.
Last but not least, the informational campaign can be supported through the HIT initiatives by creating videos or seminars and providing other information on the subject online. Thus, the healthcare workers may participate in the meetings and campaigns in which the presentations will include videos on the importance of influenza vaccination, side effects of the disregard of this option, and commentary from the pharmaceutical company in regards to all the evidence of the beneficial outcomes and the minimal rates of side effects.
QI Initiative Incorporation into Strategic Planning
While the QI initiatives have been discussed, it is important to ensure that they can be practically applied in the strategic planning for the hospital in question. First, the aim is to create an environment in which education on the subject is available and easy to share with the healthcare workers who may be motivated to follow through with the flu vaccination process. The first implementation is conducting an informational campaign involving meetings, online resources, and booklets on statistics, relevant information, and statistics in regards to influenza vaccines. The flyers will contain short but comprehensible data in regards to the measures and will highlight vaccination for healthcare workers in particular. Thus, the aspects that will be highlighted include the impact on patients, absenteeism, safe work environments, and other professional circumstances correlating with a lack of vaccination procedures.
Since another QI measure is adopting a data-driven approach, each employee will receive a link to an online survey in regards to vaccination. This will facilitate data gathering in terms of personal opinions, apprehension, and circumstances that stop some team members from following up with the procedure. The survey will consist of multiple questions to obtain both qualitative and quantitative data. The qualitative data will include the vaccination status, questions in the number of times healthcare workers were vaccinated, and the last administered flu shot. For qualitative information, it is essential to obtain answers on subjective opinions such as reasons why the participants do not seek to be vaccinated, ways to improve the process, and recommendations for top managers to compromise the low rate of administered vaccines for healthcare workers at Elmhurst.
Creating regulatory measures and policies is another QI initiative that is to be practically applied in the hospital setting. Thus, the hospital is to create an environment in which people find the vaccination process to be easy, accessible, and encouraged by the top management. The vaccines will be administered for free during the vaccination day, and the employees will be informed about them via email. The management will encourage vaccination by publishing a list of the team members who participated, motivating their coworkers to follow their example. Researchers specifically mention flu shots to be more often administered when the procedure takes place at the facility where the workers operate.
Evaluation of the QI Initiative
Several evaluation measures will be applied to determine how the QI initiatives impact the vaccination rate. First and foremost, the surveys that will be administered and the medical records will be examined in regards to the initial rate of medical providers that are vaccinated. By the end of the implementation, the new list of individuals who have followed up with the procedure will be compared with the pre-administered survey. This will allow the rate to be determined and the intervention to be assessed. The Joint Commission (2021) particularly suggests effective leadership in terms of facilitating an increase in flu-vaccinated personnel. Thus, the evaluation is to be implemented by the top management and assessed as per suggestions. Another evaluation measure is determining how the intervention has impacted absenteeism related to the flu. Researchers point out that influenza creates outcomes directly impacting the work environment in terms of staff shortage due to absent employees as a result of being exposed to the virus (Zaffina et al., 2019). Thus, the rate of absenteeism can be measured prior to and after the intervention to assess the positive effects of the practical measures. In terms of the campaigns and the meetings that are to be organized, the success rate will be evaluated by the attendance rate. A high rate will show participation, which was the initial goal of the implementation.
Conclusion
Improving the rate of vaccinated personnel will significantly reduce the risk of influenza infections at the Elmhurst hospital, which is beneficial for the patients, the medical providers, and the facility. The Quality improvement measures that are to be implemented to achieve positive results include information provision, a data-driven approach, and policies adopted by the hospital management. Thus, employees are to receive evidence-based information and attend meetings, surveys, and medical records are to be examined, and meetings and campaigns have to be organized by the top management. This will motivate healthcare providers to follow up with the procedure of receiving the shots needed to prevent influenza from negatively impacting their health and the well-being of patients. As a result, the vaccination rate at the Elmhurst hospital will increase by the desired 31% and reach the national average of 86%. The workers will be confident in the efficiency of the immunization procedure, and the yearly vaccination will become more beneficial in terms of protecting the stakeholders, improving hospital safety, and reducing influenza infection risks.
References
Carrera, M., Lawler, E. C., & White, C. (2021). Population mortality and laws encouraging influenza vaccination for hospital workers. Annals of Internal Medicine, 174(4), 444–452.
Dettori, M., Arghittu, A., Deiana, G., Azara, A., Masia, M. D., Palmieri, A., Spano, A. L., Serra, A., & Castiglia, P. (2021). Influenza vaccination strategies in healthcare workers: A cohort study (2018–2021) in an Italian University Hospital. Vaccines, 9(9), 971.
Gualano, M. R., Corradi, A., Voglino, G., Catozzi, D., Olivero, E., Corezzi, M., Bert, F., & Siliquini, R. (2021). Healthcare Workers’ (hcws) attitudes towards mandatory influenza vaccination: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Vaccine, 39(6), 901–914.
Joint Commission. (2021). R3 report issue 3 – Influenza vaccination. The Joint Commission. Web.
Kwok, K. O., Li, K. K., Wei, W. I., Tang, A., Wong, S. Y., & Lee, S. S. (2021). Influenza vaccine uptake, COVID-19 vaccination intention and vaccine hesitancy among nurses: A survey. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 114, 103854.
Neufeind, J., Wenchel, R., Boedeker, B., Wicker, S., & Wichmann, O. (2020). Monitoring Influenza vaccination coverage and acceptance among healthcare workers in German hospitals – results from three seasons. Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, 17(3), 664–672.
Odone, A., Gianfredi, V., Sorbello, S., Capraro, M., Frascella, B., Vigezzi, G. P., & Signorelli, C. (2021). The Use of Digital Technologies to Support Vaccination Programmes in Europe: State of the Art and Best Practices from Experts’ Interviews. Vaccines, 9(10), 1126.
Zaffina, S., Gilardi, F., Rizzo, C., Sannino, S., Brugaletta, R., Santoro, A., Castelli Gattinara, G., Ciofi degli Atti, M. L., Raponi, M., & Vinci, M. R. (2019). Seasonal influenza vaccination and absenteeism in health-care workers in two subsequent influenza seasons (2016/17 and 2017/18) in an Italian Pediatric Hospital. Expert Review of Vaccines, 18(4), 411–418.