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How flu vaccines keep employees healthy, productive

by Bruce Shutan

It’s never too early for Corporate America to plan for another flu season, particularly since the past few cycles have been described as intense and even deadly.

Between onsite clinics and community pharmacies, it has never been easier or more convenient to head off a spike in absenteeism and presenteeism, as well as a drop in productivity. Breakthrough technologies also have taken the sting out of these shots for squeamish employees.

Jesse McCullough, PharmD, director of field clinical services for Rite Aid Corporation, says flu shots represent one of the simplest strategies for preventing this virus from spreading across the population, as well as reducing absenteeism in the workplace.

Pharmacists significantly broaden access to immunizations for working Americans by being available to administer shots in the evening and on weekends without the need for an appointment. And when they host onsite clinics in the workplace, their services become more convenient and flexible than ever.

“People don’t have to take time off from work,” he says, noting that those who are unable to attend an onsite clinic can always get vaccinated at their local pharmacy. Mindful of the need for a convenient approach to vaccinating a busy workforce, Rite Aid has certified all of its more than 11,000 pharmacists to give immunizations in workplaces or at any of the chain’s more than 4,500 drugstores in 31 states and the District of Columbia.

The convenience of flu clinics at the worksite or the local drugstore after work for busy working Americans cannot be overstated. Pharmacists provide increased access and increased convenience in receiving vaccines.

As a national drugstore chain, Rite Aid provides convenient hours and locations for patients. “If you work 9 to 5, we’re still there in the evening and available on weekends,” says Jesse McCullough, Rite Aid’s director of clinical services. “I think this opens the door for many more individuals to be vaccinated, and because of that, hopefully we’re going to see vaccination rates continue to rise in the United States and fewer people getting ill from the flu.”

Focus on prevention

Although this year’s flu vaccine is the same as last year, McCullough warns that people should not become complacent or deluded into thinking they’re not at risk for exposure to the virus. “Because there are different strains of flu, you may have been infected by one strain one year, but you could catch another strain in another year,” he explains.

Employers are becoming increasingly aware of and receptive to onsite flu clinics, according to McCullough. “They see the negative impact of flu on their workforce, and they want to take a proactive approach to prevent that,” he says. In addition, he notes that direct billing services are palatable for companies with self-insured health plans and can be offered as an alternative to billing the employer’s commercial insurance.

He estimates that about 35% to 40% of U.S. residents are vaccinated against flu each year based on the number of flu doses that are manufactured and administered relative to the entire population. While most of the shots are administered between September and November before most flu activity peaks in January or later, he says “it seems to be trending a little bit earlier year over year.”

Anywhere from 5% to 20% of the nation’s adult population will develop influenza each year, while more than 200,000 people are hospitalized from flu complications, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In addition, the National Business Group on Health has tied flu to more than 200 million days of diminished productivity and 75 million days of absenteeism each year. The annual cost of flu-related illness is a staggering $16.3 billion when factoring in lost earnings and loss of life.

Medical advancements are making flu vaccinations more palatable to the population. “There are a number of different flu vaccines that are on the market now,” McCullough explains. “Not only do we have different manufacturers, but we also have different formulations of flu vaccines.”

Examples include a quadrivalent vaccine, needle-free, nasal-spray flu vaccine, which is less invasive, and an intradermal vaccine, which uses a very short needle.

Another key development involves the creation of new technology to create flu shots. The flu shot virus typically was cultured and grown in chicken eggs. But McCullough points to a much faster cell-based procedure that brings vaccines to market in a much shorter period of time. A second example involves a process that’s completely devoid of chicken eggs and targets people with severe allergies to the flu vaccine.

Bruce Shutan is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer.


RiteAid

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