Contact Info
Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Prevention and Control Division
651-201-5414
Vaccinating Health Care Workers
Health care workers: remember to protect yourself against influenza by being vaccinated. Your patients are counting on you not to infect them. First, do no harm.
- FluSafe: Vaccinating Staff, Protecting Patients
Health care worker flu vaccination program available to hospitals and long term care facilities.
Barriers and Recommended Strategies to Overcome Barriers
- Provide free vaccine at the workplace.
- Offer vaccine on all shifts.
- Use a mobile cart to offer vaccine.
- Provide staff with a voucher for vaccination at a drugstore or clinic.
- Partner with a larger health care organization (e.g., hospital) to provide vaccinations.
- Work with pharmacy consultants to offer influenza vaccinations for facility staff.
- Work with visiting nurses' associations or other community immunizers to provide vaccination on-site.
- Offer influenza vaccine at mandatory trainings, departmental conferences, and other meetings.
Establish a culture of prevention in your organization with the following ideas:
- Publicize a "vaccine day" in combination with education to offer influenza vaccinations.
- Encourage employees via e-mail, posters, an employee newsletter and other communication tools to get the vaccine by reminding them their decision sets an example and protects them, their loved ones, and their patients, refer to IAC: Communicating the Benefits of Influenza Vaccine and Influenza Vaccination Coverage Among Health Care Personnel - United States, 2020-21 Influenza Season.
- Track and report vaccination rates to staff and supervisors. Refer to General Immunization Upload Using the Spreadsheet Template (PDF) for how to use the MIIC Spreadsheet to load immunization data for any vaccine into MIIC.
- Remind unvaccinated employees with e-mail, letters, encouragement from supervisors, and telephone calls.
- Provide contests or incentives to get vaccinated (small gift cards, raffles, pizza party, etc.).
- Vaccinate the medical director and all managers in front of the staff.
- Offer opportunities to be vaccinated at multiple times and locations convenient to all workers on all shifts during the flu season.
- Educate and vaccinate staff as part of new employee orientations.
- Establish a process to determine and track proof of influenza vaccination each year for each employee.
- Establish a written influenza vaccination policy for employees, visit Immunization Action Coalition Influenza Vaccination Honor Roll.
- Distribute/utilize materials from the HHS National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services in Health and Health Care.
Provide educational materials in multiple languages, including: