INFLUENZA VACCINE DELIVERY

at Karori Medical Centre

Robyn Taylor RN MPHCNurse Manager

Karori Medical Centre

Staff at KMC:

• 14 General Practitioners• 8 Practice Nurses• 12 Administration Staff• 1 Health Care Assistant

CHAMPION in the practice …

• Ensure ready to go at beginning of the season

• Ensure all the GPs (and nurses) have had training on how to give the flu vaccines

• Ensure all the GPs know how to record the flu vaccine into the immunisation screen so goes to NIR

One of the most important

ingredients for success

• Personal mission to ensure as many of our eligible population are vaccinated as possible

• Carries out regular audits / follow-ups to get people in

• Has the confidence to …

• Approach GPs / Admin / Nurses who are regularly missing patients or are making mistakes

• Needs to be approachable

• Receive the flu kit

• Pre-order the vaccines

• Nurses meet specifically to discuss the logistics of how best to deliver the vaccines … how to improve on last year

particularly important this year with Zostavax coming in on 1st April 2018

Lead in ….

Make patients aware the flu vaccines are available

• Once flu vaccines arrive …

• Initial contact is via patient portal

• Wait on ‘word of mouth’ for a couple of weeks

• Identify eligible population (including pregnant women) who haven’t had the vaccine via the DrInfoAudit tool

• Text / telephone / send letters to unvaccinated patients - this is an ongoing task

• All clinicians recommend the influenza vaccine to patients

• All staff are offered a free influenza vaccine at KMC

• Opportunistic vaccination is a main focus

• Use Medtech Appointment Scanner every morning to identify eligible patients – ‘FLU’ note put on appointment template

TEAM APPROACH …

Receptionists:

• Ask every patient presenting to reception 65 years or over if they would like a flu vaccine before seeing the doctor or nurse

• Place on the nurse appointment template. Every attempt is made for the nurse to give vaccine before seeing the doctor to reduce waiting time for thepatient

• Once season in full swing, reception use Dashboard to identify those who have not yet had the vaccine

Nurses:

• Ask every patient if they want a flu vaccine –eligible or not, including children

• Always recommend the flu vaccine

• Check the Dashboard for unvaccinated patients who are seeing the nurse

DOCTORS …

• Encourage patients to have vaccine

• Doctors are gently encouraged to …

• There is reluctance to give to children –understandable due to different doses etc.

the vaccine

• Verbal consent is documented from our enrolled patients 16 years and older

• Written consent is obtained from parents/guardians for those under 15 years, and casual patients

Logistics …

• Ensure there is enough room in the vaccine fridges to appropriately store the vaccines

• Are consent forms ready / pamphlets available?

• Open clinics every week day

• Booked appointments in the nurse evening and Saturday clinics

• Visit two rest-homes and a residential facility for disabled people. Vaccinate residents and staff

• Visit people in their own home who find it difficult to come into KMC

• Offer workplace flu vaccines to organisations in Karori … New World, Countdown, Zealandia, local school staff

• All new staff at KMC are trained on how to give and record influenza vaccines on the NIR.

• Refresher offered to those who may have forgotten from last year … (or at least I check if they know)

• All clinicians are given a laminated copy of:

o the eligible medical conditions for patients … particularly for those ‘other’ criteria that are not as well known

o the strains for the current season

o the age range for the different vaccines

Plastered everywhere …

• Many places around KMC

• Library noticeboard

• Mall noticeboard

• Advertising in the local newspaper

On the back of every clinical door …

Questions