Mandatory Influenza Vaccinations for Health Care Workers - Research Paper Example

Finally, the paper has discussed national benefits of having Health Care workers immunized. The American Hospital Association (2011) points out that influenza is a dangerous contagious disease that spreads quickly from one person to another even before the appearance of its signs. The diseases cause annual deaths of an estimated population of 24,000 people and more than 150,000 hospital admissions. Hospitalized patients are more vulnerable to influenza because their system of immunity has already been weekend by the disease they are suffering from which has caused their admission.

Health Care Workers vaccination is important for it prevents deaths and illnesses among patients as well as reducing their absenteeism when they infect each other with the disease. Since 1981, annual health care workers’ vaccination has been recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP). However, only half of the total number of Health Care Workers in the United States has adhered to the rule. Protection of the well-being and health of patients and health workers is a worldwide matter of concern.

Research in America has for the first few years shown that because of the health workers failure to undergo vaccination, health care workers unintentionally expose patients to seasonal influenza. American Hospital Associations Board of Trustees has imposed policies that require health care workers to undergo mandatory vaccination or put on masks while handling patients during seasons of influenza. The aim of this is to care and protect lives of patients (American Hospital Association, 2011). Data collected annually by Center for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S. shows that more than two hundred thousand influenza patients are admitted in hospitals every year.

Collected data also shows that a population of above 36,000 people dies of influenza annually. The other disease that puts people at risk of death in the U.S. is breast cancer. Even though the vaccination is about 70 to 90% effective in preventing influenza, it does not work with people aged above the age of 65 years and people with chronic health conditions preventing them from the vaccine (Rakita et al., 2010). Nowadays, many health care organizations and hospitals have embraced the policy of getting their employees, students, hospital contract workers, volunteers and affiliated medical staff vaccinated seasonally for the safety of the patients.

Every employee is supposed to be immunized unless they have a religious or medical reason preventing them from the immunization. The rate of vaccination has gone above 90% due to application of the policies. Examples of organizations in which influenza vaccination in health care centers is a mandatory practice and a condition of employment include American Academy of Pediatrics, National Patient Safety Foundation and Association of Professionals in Infection Control (American Hospital Association).

Prevention of the spread of influenza between patients and health care personnel minimizes economic effects in the institution as well as reducing the cost of living in the society. National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (2007) outlines an example of outbreak of influence that occurred in an internal medicine ward in which 23% of the members of staff became infected. The result of this was a fourteen days sick leave for each of the members. Eight admissions that had been