Doctors, Health Care Workers On H1N1 Vaccine Priority List; Front-Line Caregivers Planning Now To Keep Patients Safe

Main Category: Swine Flu
Also Included In: Flu / Cold / SARS;  Immune System / Vaccines
Article Date: 30 Sep 2009 - 3:00 PDT

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"Physician, heal thyself." That Biblical phrase is the gist of the cautionary message public health leaders are telling physicians and nurses this flu season.

As flu season hits, physicians and other health leaders want health care workers healthy and caring for patients, not out sick or potentially spreading germs. That is why front-line health workers are in the top group of the H1N1 vaccine recipient priority list.

"We can't have people getting sick with nobody to care for them, so we have to do what we can to keep health care professionals well and on the job," says Ed Sherwood, MD, chair of the Texas Medical Association (TMA) Committee on Infectious Diseases and a member of TMA's Be Wise - ImmunizeSM Advisory Panel. "And of course we have to ensure our health care workers are not transmitting disease and making a challenging problem even worse."

In addition to health care and emergency medical services workers who care for patients, public health officials recommend these people receive the H1N1 vaccine first: pregnant women, people who live with or care for children younger than 6 months of age, and everyone 6 months through 24 years of age. Those 25 through 64 years of age at higher risk for complications from H1N1 because of chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems also should be immunized against H1N1 when the vaccine becomes available.

Doctors still expect to begin receiving the H1N1 vaccine in mid-October. The vaccine will be distributed to health care providers in stages every couple of weeks after that, to administer to people in the target vaccine groups. These people should plan now to get their shot as soon as it is available.

"To slow the spread of H1N1 and limit the number of severe cases, we need to initially target two groups of people: those at highest risk of infection or of requiring hospitalization with influenza, or even dying from it, and those who need to stay healthy because they provide care for others," adds Wendy Chung, MD, member of the TMA Flu Fighters, select physician panel composed of members of TMA's Committee on Infectious Diseases.

Front-line health care workers who become ill are advised to stay away from patients for a full seven days after they first experience the onset of symptoms or until symptoms completely resolve, whichever is longer. Health care workers are urged to make arrangements in advance for the care of sick children so they can be on the job when they are needed most. Health leaders recommend all health facilities review and prepare to implement their own pandemic response plans. Some hospitals and other health care entities already are doing so. St. David's HealthCare, a hospital system in Central Texas, for example, expects everyone who cares for patients there either to get a seasonal flu shot or to wear a mask when interacting with patients. St. David's is part of the Hospital Corporation of America, which has adopted a similar policy system-wide.

"Bottom line, doctors and other health care workers who directly treat patients are planning now to protect themselves, so that they can best be able to safely care for patients during what is projected to be an extremely busy flu season," adds Dr. Chung.

TMA is actively involved in improving immunization practices in Texas through its Be Wise - Immunize program. The program works to educate physicians and the public about the latest vaccination practices. Since the program began in 2004, more than 152,000 vaccinations have been given to Texas children.

TMA is the largest state medical society in the nation, representing nearly 44,000 physician and medical student members. It is located in Austin and has 120 component county medical societies around the state. TMA's key objective since 1853 is to improve the health of all Texans.

Source
Texas Medical Association