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Most older adults think nursing homes should require staff flu shots
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Almost three-quarters of older adults think nursing homes should require all staff to get the influenza vaccine and most said they would be less likely to choose to reside in a particular nursing home if they knew that a percentage of staff was not vaccinated, according to a new poll conducted by the University of Michigan.
The CDC recommends everyone aged 6 months and older — including all health care personnel — get vaccinated against influenza each season. Vaccination among health care personnel can reduce the risk for respiratory illness in nursing home patients — one of the groups at high risk for influenza-related complications. But the CDC reported that just 68% of workers in long-term care facilities received the vaccine in 2016-2017.
Most respondents in the new poll — 70% — said they would be less likely to choose a nursing home if they knew one-third of the staff had not been vaccinated.
"We've finally gotten to the point in the last few years where most inpatient hospitals require their staff to get vaccinated against the flu, or at least strongly promote it," Preeti Malani, MD, chief health officer and professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School, said in a news release. "These results suggest that other types of care facilities should do the same to protect vulnerable patients — or potentially risk losing business.”
In October, Preeti and colleagues polled a nationally representative sample of 2,007 Americans aged between 50 and 80 years. Among them, 73% thought nursing homes should “definitely” require influenza vaccination for medical staff, and 71% said the same for nonmedical staff. Fewer respondents said nursing homes should “possibly” require medical staff (18%) and nonmedical staff (20%) to get vaccinated and only 9% said nursing homes should not require the vaccine for each group.
The percentages were lower when it came to non-staff, with 61% of respondents saying that residents should “definitely” be required to get the vaccine and just 25% feeling the same about visitors. – by Gerard Gallagher
Reference:
CDC. The influenza vaccination coverage in long-term care settings. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/toolkit/long-term-care/coverage.htm. Accessed January 4, 2018.
University of Michigan. National poll on healthy aging – flu vaccine for nursing home staff and residents. https://www.healthyagingpoll.org/sites/default/files/2018-01/NPHA_Flu-Report_121517.pdf. Accessed January 4, 2018.
Disclosures: Infectious Disease News was unable to confirm relevant financial disclosures at the time of publication.