Healthcare worker vaccination programs: what works?

There is a new study out in ICHE by Tom Talbot and colleagues that looked at which factors of an influenza vaccination program were associated with a higher proportion of healthcare workers being vaccinated for seasonal influenza. The survey was completed during June 2008 and looked at programs in place during the 2007-2008 influenza season at 50 hospitals within the 78-hospital University HeathSystem Consortium (UHC) Benchmarking Program. The proportion vaccinated was the same whether or not hospitals required a signed declination from refusers. Factors association with higher compliance were weekend provision of vaccine, train-the trainer programs, report of vaccination rates to administrators or to the board of trustees, a letter sent to employees emphasizing the importance of vaccination, and any form of visible leadership support. Sadly, the median compliance was 55% and ranged from 26% to 81%. Perhaps I should have titled my post, "what didn't work" because it's hard to say anything really worked with compliance this low.