Influenza (Flu)

Preparing for Influenza Season: Long-Term Care

Even before influenza is detected in a long-term care facility, there are prevention and control measures that can be taken.

On this page:
Vaccination
Staff training and education
Surveillance
Facility supplies and preparation

Implement a seasonal influenza vaccination campaign for residents, staff, and volunteers as vaccine becomes available. This is also a good time to vaccinate residents who are not up to date with Td and pneumococcal vaccinations.
Encourage all regular visitors to the facility to have a seasonal influenza vaccination.
Implement an influenza vaccination campaign for residents, staff, and volunteers as vaccine becomes available and in accordance with current CDC and MDH recommendations.

Develop and implement a Respiratory Protection Program for staff.
Provide staff with training of appropriate infection prevention strategies to be used throughout the facility by all staff, residents, volunteers and visitors. (See Infection Prevention and Control section)
Inform staff of the signs and symptoms of influenza-like illness. These include fever, cough, sore throat, etc.

Conduct surveillance for influenza-like illness in staff and residents.
Advise staff to contact their supervisor if they feel ill OR identify residents with new symptoms of influenza-like illness.

Develop a plan for collecting respiratory specimens and performing rapid influenza testing (e.g., rapid diagnostic test, immunofluorescence) and viral cultures for influenza.
Obtain influenza testing supplies (e.g. synthetic or non-cotton Dacron swabs and viral transport media).
Identify a system to transport specimens to MDH for laboratory testing.
Ensure that your facility has adequate infection prevention supplies.
Post Cover Your Cough posters throughout the facility.
Post signs on all facility entrances asking visitors who are ill not to enter: Stop! Protect Our Patients/Residents Posters .
Consider placing alcohol-based hand sanitizer at all facility/unit entries.
Make tissues, trash receptacles, and hand sanitizer available throughout the facility for use by staff, residents, and visitors.
In conjunction with the facility medical director, develop a protocol for antiviral use to expedite treatment and prophylaxis if an influenza outbreak occurs.