By Charles Kilo
For those in health care, the scare of H1N1 influenza in 2009 served as a reminder that pandemic disease outbreaks are not a thing of the past. In fact, annual flu statistics raise concerns. Between 1976 and 2009, annual flu deaths ranged from 3,000 to as many as 49,000 nationally. These statistics illustrate why Oregon Health & Science University so strongly agrees with The Oregonian that the protection of the public from influenza is a priority.
As the newspaper pointed out in an editorial last week ("Mandatory flu shots in Oregon," Jan. 17), one key preventive measure is the assurance of high flu vaccination rates among health care workers. Currently, 83 percent of OHSU health care employees are vaccinated. Those unable to be vaccinated or choosing not to be vaccinated wear masks when engaged in direct patient care activities.
This conflicts with state data published in The Oregonian that only 45 percent of OHSU employees are vaccinated. We want to reassure patients and visitors with additional information. The lower percentage was from last winter and included all 14,000 OHSU employees, thousands of whom do not work in OHSU's hospitals or clinics. While we encourage all employees to receive the yearly flu vaccine, our employees targeted for flu vaccination because they work with patients totals approximately 7,500.
Hospitals throughout the Northwest must remain vigilant in preventing all health care-acquired infections, including the spread of flu. At OHSU, raising employee vaccination rates has been intentional, and it isn't our only approach. As readers may know, the state of Oregon does not currently allow mandatory flu vaccination for health care workers, so programs must be voluntary.
In addition to our requirement for non-vaccinated clinical employees to wear masks and gloves when caring for patients, we provide screening of visitors with flulike symptoms and place hand-hygiene stations in convenient locations for all to use. We have programs to assure high hand-hygiene compliance among our clinical staff. We also monitor state and national influenza data prepared to further reinforce these and other efforts to prevent flu transmission in our hospitals and clinics.
Efforts to reduce the impact of influenza must involve the community as well. Children are the most common carriers of flu. Therefore, a highly effective way of protecting your family and others is to make sure you and your children are vaccinated. For some, this means confronting myths about vaccination with scientific facts that demonstrate benefit and very little risk from the vaccine.
Limiting the impact of flu season is a responsibility we all share. It needs to take place in our hospitals, clinics, schools, homes and everywhere else in between. Oregonians must collectively combat flu season on an annual basis, and we must be prepared for the next epidemic, when countless lives may be at stake. At OHSU, we are fully committed to protecting patients and the health of our community, whether the risk is influenza, other health care-associated conditions or a yet unforeseen risk.
Physician Charles Kilo is chief medical officer for OHSU.