Emergency Preparedness in the Workplace: The Flulapalooza Model for Mass Vaccination

• Published in: American journal of public health (1971) 2017-09, Vol.107 (S2), p.S168-S176
• Main Authors: Swift, Melanie D, Aliyu, Muktar H, Byrne, Daniel W, Qian, Keqin, McGown, Paula, Kinman, Patricia O, Hanson, Katherine Louise, Culpepper, Demoyne, Cooley, Tamara J, Yarbrough, Mary I
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: AJPH Practice; Best practice; Civil Defense - organization & administration; Digital media; Disaster Planning - organization & administration; Documentation; Efficiency; Emergency management; Emergency preparedness; Employees; Health care; Health care facilities; Health services; Humans; Immunization; Immunization/Vaccines; Influenza; Influenza, Human - prevention & control; Layouts; Mass media effects; Mass Vaccination - organization & administration; Models, Organizational; Occupational Health; Organizations; Pandemics; Prevention; Public health; Public Health Practice; Quality assessment; Quality control; Quality of care; Social media; Social networks; Tennessee; Vaccines; Workplace - organization & administration; Workplaces
• ISSN: 0090-0036; 1541-0048
• DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2017.303953

To explore whether an emergency preparedness structure is a feasible, efficient, and sustainable way for health care organizations to manage mass vaccination events. We used the Hospital Incident Command System to conduct a 1-day annual mass influenza vaccination event at Vanderbilt University Medical Center over 5 successive years (2011-2015). Using continuous quality improvement principles, we assessed whether changes in layout, supply management, staffing, and documentation systems improved efficiency. A total of 66 591 influenza vaccines were administered at 5 annual Flulapalooza events; 13 318 vaccines per event on average. Changes to the physical layout, staffing mix, and documentation processes improved vaccination efficiency 74%, from approximately 38 to 67 vaccines per hour per vaccinator, while reducing overall staffing needs by 38%. An unexpected finding was the role of social media in facilitating active engagement. Health care organizations can use a closed point-of-dispensing model and Hospital Incident Command System to conduct mass vaccination events, and can adopt the "Flulapalooza method" as a best practice model to enhance efficiency.