The Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn is the first Trust in the region to reach 90% of patient facing staff vaccinated against the flu.
This year the Trust focussed on making getting the flu jab as easy as possible for staff by running multiple flu clinics from fixed clinics to roving clinics to peer vaccinators.
The Trust has also run two 24 hour jab-a-thons which saw over 270 staff vaccinated over the course of the jab-a-thons.
Dr April Brown, Chief Nurse at QEH said: “I am exceptionally proud that QEH has smashed the national target of 90% of patient facing staff vaccinated against the flu so early in the season.
“This is excellent news for our patients and staff, and reduces everyone’s risk of passing the flu on, making our hospital safer for patients and staff.
Flu vaccines are a safety intervention and protect those who have the jab, including patients and staff, against the most common expected strains of flu. Having high numbers of staff vaccinated reduces the possibility of the Trust experiencing staff sickness due to flu or from passing it on to vulnerable patients.
Dr Brown continued: “This year we worked really hard and been relentless in making flu jabs easy for our staff to access and as you can see by the figures this has really paid off.
“However we are not complacent and we are continuing to work towards getting our entire patient-facing and non-patient facing staff vaccinated over the coming weeks.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to encourage members of our local community to get their jab if they are eligible for one – it’s the one thing that everyone can do to support the Trust this winter.”
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