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Flu vaccine awards
LOURDES STAFF WIN TOP FLU VACCINE AWARD FOR FOURTH SUCCESSIVE YEAR
It was four in a row for the staff of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital at this year’s Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Awards as they took the top prize once again. The ceremony, organised by the National Immunisation Office, was held virtually this year.
A massive 89.2% of staff at the Drogheda hospital received the flu vaccine during the winter period 2020-21, the highest in the country. Their colleagues in Beaumont Hospital took second spot with an uptake of 87.1%.
Third place in the acute category went to Wexford General Hospital where 84.9% of staff got the flu jab.
Lourdes flu champion Martin Smith has been the person responsible for leading the campaign and heading the team of peer vaccinators over the last number of years and has just retired, passing the baton on to his former colleagues.
“It was a pleasure to lead this wonderful team with Adrian [Cleary, Director of Nursing] to first place for the last four years. Best of luck everyone with this year’s campaign,” he said.
In the best improver category, maternity hospitals took the top two spots. University Maternity Hospital Limerick saw a seasonal uptake of 69.9%, which represented an
BELOW: Staff at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital celebrate their award win during a recent flu vaccination clinic. ABOVE: Eileen Ronan, Director of Midwifery, University Maternity Hospital Limerick, presents the hospital’s award to some of the staff who helped ensure they took the best improvers prize.
incredible increase of 41.4% on the previous year. Cork University Maternity Hospital had an uptake of 73.2% of staff, a jump of 35.1% year on year.
Kilcreene Orthopaedic Hospital in Kilkenny saw their staff uptake rise by a third to 59.5% to land them third place in the category.
Eileen Ronan, Director of Midwifery, UMHL, was delighted with the award win.
“On behalf of multidisciplinary team of UMHL, I am delighted to receive the award of best improvement for influenza vaccination amongst healthcare workers for 2020/2021 influenza season. The uptake in 2020/2021 demonstrates the awareness among our teams of the importance in protecting themselves, their families and services users in our care,” she said.
In the long-term care facilities, all the top three in the under 100 beds category reached almost full uptake by staff. Brymore House Nursing Home in Howth had a 100% uptake, followed by Carlingford Nursing
Home in Carlingford, Co Louth with 98.1%, and Howth Hill Lodge Nursing Home, Howth at 97.8%.
Best improvers in the under 100 beds category were Re Nua in Cashel, Co Tipperary whose uptake of 86.4% was a jump of over 60%. In second and third place were Tralee Community Nursing Unit at 81.5% (up 55.5%) and Kenmare Community Hospital in Co Kerry at 92.1%, up by 53.4%.
In the over 100 bed long-term care facilities, the winners were Our Lady’s Manor, Dalkey in Dublin with a 95.9% staff vaccine uptake. Killarney Community Hospitals (Fuschia, Hawthorn and Heather wards) followed in second place with 88.6% uptake. Peamount Healthcare ID Community-based Service came third with 85.5%.
Killarney Community Hospitals also took home the best improver award. Their 88.6% uptake was 39.1% higher than last year.
The Royal Hospital Donnybrook was second with 55.5%, up 11.7%, and third was Chery Orchard Hospital in Dublin 10 with 58.9%, up 5.7%.
HSE CEO Paul Reid told the awards ceremony that the phenomenal uptake in the COVID-19 vaccine in Ireland was thanks largely to the strong confidence built up through the flu vaccine campaigns.
“A huge thank you to all the staff who have served as ambassadors for the flu vaccine campaign and have inspired and driven confidence in the vaccine among their fellow workers and congratulations to all the winners today,” he said.
“As we head into winter, we still have a great deal of apprehension over the challenges that are ahead for our acute services and they could be very significant. We are faced with having to manage the twin challenges of flu and COVID and that is why it is so important that flu vaccine levels among healthcare workers continue to remain high.
He noted that the last 18 months of COVID have seen trust and confidence in the HSE soar thanks to consistent and coherent advice from NPHET, GPs, consultants, and other healthcare workers.
“We have taken great learnings from how that trust of the public has risen through COVID and with the vaccine uptake, and how we can use that to see high levels of the flu vaccine through the community this winter,” added the HSE CEO.
PROTECT YOURSELF AND OTHERS: GET THE FLU VACCINE
Dr Catherine Lynch, Specialist in Public Health Medicine with the HSE’s Public Health Department in the South East, received her fl u vaccine recently and urged everyone to make sure they do the same
“Flu is unpredictable. As high an uptake as can be achieved generally, in addition to cutting the risks of infection, will help the health services to better manage any demands on the system from COVID-19 cases. We also want to avoid scenarios whereby people might become co-infected with flu and the coronavirus and the severe illness that may be involved,” said Dr Lynch. “Flu is a serious illness. Although the severity of the flu season can vary, we know that people aged 65 and over are most likely to be impacted and have an increased likelihood of severe illness, being admitted into hospital or dying from flu when compared to the general population. The flu vaccine is the best protection against flu this winter. A flu vaccine will protect those aged over 65 from the very worst effects of flu.”
ABOVE: Dr. Catherine Lynch (Specialist in Public Health Medicine, HSE Public Health Department/South East), who received her fl u vaccine at a clinic in the HSE’s offi ces in Lacken, Kilkenny. BELOW: Maria Long and Róisín Burke of the Primary Care Unit, South East Community Healthcare, who received their fl u vaccine at a clinic in the HSE’s offi ces in Lacken, Kilkenny.
This year the free fl u vaccine is recommended for you if you are in one of these groups:
• Aged 65 and over • People with certain medical • A health care worker conditions which put them at • A child aged 2 – 17 increased risk from the • At any stage of pregnancy complications of flu.
