Strategies To Reach Employees Nurturing Guidance and Trust in Healthcare [STRENGTH] Immunizations: A Look at How the University of California, San Diego Health (UCSD) is Advancing Immunizations

In San Diego, California, Amy Sitapati, MD, Marcia Isakari, MD, MPH, FACOEM, and Arthur Sanchez, NP-C work jointly to integrate immunizations as a common practice at their workplace. Their top priority is to ensure that the employees at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) are immunized to ensure their safety and prevent the spread of contagious diseases in the workplace. Through partnerships, education, and outreach, they have learned a great deal about strategies to improve adult immunizations and how to facilitate access to vaccine administration. UCSD encompasses approximately 41,000 employees and hosts two full-scope occupational medicine clinics. Occupational and environmental medicine healthcare providers serve a diverse working population, including healthcare workers, campus employees, maintenance workers, and first responders. Their working population is comprised of 58% females and 42% males, with 44% being under the age of 35. It includes a diverse population with 31% white, 22% Asian, 27% Hispanic/Latino, and 15% African American.

Since UCSD was onboarded to the Specialty Societies Advancing Adult Immunization (SSAAI) grant program, they have been improving outreach and education in administering vaccines to overlooked employees. Their objectives are to:

  • Improve electronic health record (EHR) workflows and create a real-time dashboard,

  • Listen to the needs of their employees,

  • Develop partnerships, and

  • Bridge gaps.

Outreach and Education

The UCSD team strategized education and outreach to bring awareness that occupational medicine providers are available to answer questions about health-related issues. By collaborating with Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S) staff members, they were able to provide a strong “on the ground” presence. The project leads were given the opportunity to present at a monthly safety meeting, providing an outlet for the occupational medicine health team to reach out to employees and let them know they were there to help. UCSD held eight (8) vaccination clinics targeted toward service and facilities workers. The team learned significant lessons on how to best deliver vaccinations to employees.

 UCSD Intranet

The UCSD intranet provides internal information for employees about when and where they can get vaccinated. This information allows employees to stay informed on why they should receive the influenza vaccine. The website allows employees to respond if they received the vaccine outside of UCSD Health or if they chose to decline the vaccine. This helps track the documentation aspect of the Standard for Adult Immunization Practice (SAIP). The UCSD team also developed a video sharing the experience of a fellow healthcare worker who lost a family member due to COVID-19. The more employees learn about immunizations, the better the result.

Lessons Learned

While hosting these clinics, the team learned that convenience and timing are important factors to consider. They found that custodians, food service employees, and facilities/engineers were less likely to get vaccinated because of the distance and timing of the clinics. Most employees were not willing to walk 20 minutes during breaks or come to work early or stay late to be vaccinated. As a solution, immunization clinics were held at the workers' home departments and at varying times of the day to ensure all staff members had access to immunizations.

Peer pressure from a fellow employee played an important role in persuading people to be vaccinated. The UCSD team found that if a manager or colleague was getting vaccinated, the hesitant person would most likely agree to be vaccinated. It was important when hosting these clinics that the employees felt comfortable and could learn more about the importance of being vaccinated.

Finally, the team learned to never underestimate the value of free giveaways! The team provided inexpensive pens (which included a screwdriver, compass, stylus, phone stand, and LED light) to those who were vaccinated. The pens heightened employees’ interest and provided an opportunity for occupational and environmental healthcare professionals to discuss the importance of keeping up to date with their immunizations.

Future Plans

The team at UCSD anticipates hosting numerous focus groups with workers from unions identified as having lower vaccination rates. These focus groups will help better understand employees’ behaviors and attitudes towards vaccinations. The team anticipates using this information to create strategies and educational resources to facilitate and increase vaccinations. UCSD is committed to hosting numerous vaccination clinics this flu season that are tailored to employees with lower immunization rates.

Published date: August 14, 2024