Barriers and facilitators to influenza-like illness absenteeism among healthcare workers in a tertiary-care healthcare system, 2017–2018 influenza season

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Diep Hoang Johnson ◽  
Fauzia Osman ◽  
Jero Bean ◽  
Linda Stevens ◽  
Daniel Shirley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare System ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Influenza Season ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Barriers And Facilitators ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Disciplinary Action ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Influenza Like Illness ◽  
Inpatient Settings

Abstract Objective: Influenza can be introduced and propagated in healthcare settings by healthcare workers (HCWs) working while ill with influenza. However, reasons driving this behavior are unclear. In this study, we examined barriers to and facilitators of absenteeism during the influenza season. Design: Cross-sectional mixed methods study. Setting: Ambulatory and inpatient settings in a large, tertiary-care healthcare system. Methods: An anonymous electronic survey was sent to HCWs between June 11 and July 13, 2018, asking participants to self-report influenza-like illness (ie, ILI symptoms of fever, chills, cough, or sore throat) during the 2017–2018 influenza season. We conducted a logistical regression analysis to identify factors associated with absenteeism. Results: Of 14,250 HCWs, 17% responded to the survey. Although 1,180 respondents (51%) reported symptoms of ILI, 575 (43%) did not stay home while ill. The most commonly perceived barriers to ILI absenteeism included being understaffed (odds ratio [OR], 1.78; P = .04), unable to find a replacement for work (OR, 2.26; P = .03), desiring not to use time off (OR, 2.25; P = .003), and paid by the hour or unable to afford being absent (OR, 2.05; P = .02). Common perceived facilitators of absenteeism included support from coworkers and management, clearer policy, better sick days availability, and lower perceived threat of disciplinary action. Conclusions: Reporting to work with ILI symptoms is common among HCWs. Most barriers and facilitators are related to systems. Addressing system factors, such as policies regarding sick days and sick leave and ensuring adequate backup staffing, is likely to facilitate absenteeism among ill HCWs.

scholarly journals COVID-19 Vaccine Intention among Healthcare Workers in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Vaccines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 835
Author(s):  
Mohammed Noushad ◽  
Mohammad Zakaria Nassani ◽  
Anas B. Alsalhani ◽  
Pradeep Koppolu ◽  
Fayez Hussain Niazi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Healthcare System ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Vaccine Coverage ◽  
Vaccination Campaign ◽  
Herd Immunity ◽  
Positive Sign ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Public Health Strategies

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused largescale morbidity and mortality and a tremendous burden on the healthcare system. Healthcare workers (HCWs) require adequate protection to avoid onward transmission and minimize burden on the healthcare system. Moreover, HCWs can also influence the general public into accepting the COVID-19 vaccine. Therefore, determining COVID-19 vaccine intention among HCWs is of paramount importance to plan tailor-made public health strategies to maximize vaccine coverage. A structured questionnaire was administered in February and March 2021 among HCWs in Saudi Arabia using convenience sampling, proceeding the launch of the vaccination campaign. HCWs from all administrative regions of Saudi Arabia were included in the study. In total, 674 out of 1124 HCWs responded and completed the survey (response rate 59.9%). About 65 percent of the HCWs intended to get vaccinated. The intention to vaccinate was significantly higher among HCWs 50 years of age or older, Saudi nationals and those who followed the updates about COVID-19 vaccines (p < 0.05). The high percentage (26 percent) of those who were undecided in getting vaccinated is a positive sign. As the vaccination campaign gathers pace, the attitude is expected to change over time. Emphasis should be on planning healthcare strategies to convince the undecided HCWs into accepting the vaccine in order to achieve the coverage required to achieve herd immunity.

Influenza Vaccination Rates and Motivators Among Healthcare Worker Groups

2007 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Banks Christini ◽  
Kathleen A. Shutt ◽  
Karin E. Byers
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Influenza Vaccine ◽  
Influenza Vaccination ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Teaching Hospitals ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Influenza Like Illness ◽  
Vaccination Rates ◽  
Nursing Aides

Background.The rate of influenza vaccination among healthcare workers (HCWs) is approximately 40%. Differences in vaccination rates among HCW groups and reasons for accepting or rejecting vaccination are poorly understood.Objectives.To determine vaccination rates and motivators among different HCW groups during the 2004-2005 influenza season.Design.Cross-sectional survey conducted between July 10 and September 30, 2005.Setting.Two tertiary care teaching hospitals in an urban center.Participants.Physicians, nurses, nursing aides, and other staff. Surveys were collected from 1,042 HCWs (response rate, 42%).Results.Sixty-nine percent of physicians (n = 282) and 63% of medical students (n = 145) were vaccinated, compared with 46% of nurses (n = 336), 42% of nursing aides (n = 135), and 29% of administrative personnel (n = 144). Physicians and medical students were significantly more likely to be vaccinated than all other groups (P < .0001). Pediatricians (84%) were more likely than internists (69%) and surgeons (43%) to be vaccinated (P < .0001). Among the HCWs who were vaccinated, 33.4% received the live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) and 66.6% received trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine (TIV). Vaccinated HCWs were less likely than unvaccinated HCWs to report an influenza-like illness (P = .03). Vaccination with LAIV resulted in fewer episodes of influenza-like illness than did receiving no vaccine (P = .03). The most common reason for rejecting vaccination was a concern about availability. Understanding that HCWs may transmit the virus to patients correlated with vaccine acceptance (P = .0004).Conclusions.Significant differences in vaccination exist among physician specialties and employee groups, and there are inadequate vaccination rates among those with the greatest amount of patient contact, potentially providing a basis for group-specific interventions.

scholarly journals Perspectives on simulation-based training from paediatric healthcare providers in Nigeria: a national survey

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. e034029
Author(s):  
Rachel Umoren ◽  
Veronica Chinyere Ezeaka ◽  
Ireti B Fajolu ◽  
Beatrice N Ezenwa ◽  
Patricia Akintan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Professional Training ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Skills Acquisition ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Simulation Based

ObjectivesThe objective of this study was to explore the access to, and perceived utility of, various simulation modalities by in-service healthcare providers in a resource-scarce setting.SettingPaediatric training workshops at a national paediatric conference in Nigeria.ParticipantsAll 200 healthcare workers who attended the workshop sessions were eligible to participate. A total of 161 surveys were completed (response rate 81%).Primary and secondary outcome measuresA paper-based 25-item cross-sectional survey on simulation-based training (SBT) was administered to a convenience sample of healthcare workers from secondary and tertiary healthcare facilities.ResultsRespondents were mostly 31–40 years of age (79, 49%) and women (127, 79%). Consultant physicians (26, 16%) and nurses (56, 35%) were in both general (98, 61%) and subspecialty (56, 35%) practice. Most had 5–10 years of experience (62, 37%) in a tertiary care setting (72, 43%). Exposure to SBT varied by profession with physicians more likely to be exposed to manikin-based (29, 30% physicians vs 12, 19% nurses, p<0.001) or online training (7, 7% physician vs 3, 5% nurses, p<0.05). Despite perceived barriers to SBT, respondents thought that SBT should be expanded for continuing education (84, 88% physician vs 39, 63% nurses, p<0.001), teaching (73, 76% physicians vs 16, 26% nurses, p<0.001) and research (65, 68% physicians vs 14, 23% nurses, p<0.001). If facilities were available, nearly all respondents (92, 98% physicians; 52, 96% nurses) would recommend the use of online simulation for their centre.ConclusionsThe access of healthcare workers to SBT is limited in resource-scarce settings. While acknowledging the challenges, respondents identified many areas in which SBT may be useful, including skills acquisition, skills practice and communication training. Healthcare workers were open to the use of online SBT and expressed the need to expand SBT beyond the current scope for health professional training in Nigeria.

A cross sectional study to assess nasal carriage of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus in healthcare professionals in a tertiary care hospital

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Fibhaa Syed ◽  
Nasim Akhtar ◽  
Mohammad Ali Arif ◽  
Adil Ramzan ◽  
Rauf Niazi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Staphylococcus Aureus ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Nasal Carriage ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Diffusion Method ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Methicillin Resistant ◽  
Nasal Swabs

Abstract Objective: To determine the nasal carriage of staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus among healthcare workers in a tertiary care setting. Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, Islamabad, Pakistan, from April to July 2018, and comprised healthcare workers at the institution. Nasal swabs were collected and cultured on Mannitol salt agar. Mannitol fermenting colonies which were gram-positive cocci, catalase-positive and coagulase-positive were identified as staphylococcus aureus. Antibiotic susceptibility test was performed by modified Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method. Methicillin resistance was detected using cefoxitin disc diffusion method. Data was analysed using SPSS 23. Results: Of the 210 nasal swabs, 52(24.76%) had a staphylococcus aureus growth, and, of them, 15(7.1%) were methicillin-resistant. No association could be established with either any single category of healthcare worker or an inter-department variation (p>0.05). Likewise, there was no association with age, gender, duration of service, smoking, co-morbidities, use of antibiotics in the preceding six months, treating a patient with methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus in the preceding six months and hospitalisation in the preceding year (p>0.05). Conclusion: The frequency of nasal carriage of methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus amongst healthcare workers was regardless of the nature of their professional engagement. Key Words: Methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus, Nasal carriage, Continuous...

Assessing the need for a nurse-led breast cancer telephone follow-up clinic in Alberta, Canada.

2013 ◽  
Vol 31 (26_suppl) ◽  
pp. 111-111
Author(s):  
Sasha M. Lupichuk ◽  
Cindy Railton ◽  
Jenny J. Ko ◽  
Jennifer McCormick ◽  
Lihong Zhong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Endocrine Therapy ◽  
Telephone Interview ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Unmet Need ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Specialist Care ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Perceived Need

111 Background: Routine follow-up of breast cancer (BC) patients is largely transferred to primary care due to limited tertiary care resources and evidence supporting the acceptability and safety of this approach. It is unknown how BC survivors are faring in the community with treatment and surveillance goals, and if there is an unmet need for access to specialist care. Objectives of this cross-sectional study of BC survivors were to examine: concordance with endocrine therapy and follow-up recommendations; perceived need for help with achieving these recommendations; and, perceived need for a telephone follow-up clinic. Methods: Eligible participants were women with stage I-III BC diagnosed June 2006-September 2009 who had been seen in consultation at a tertiary cancer centre (TCC) in Alberta, Canada. 960 potentially eligible women were invited to participate via mail-out from the Alberta Cancer Registry. Consenting participants completed a structured telephone interview. Further patient, disease, endocrine therapy and surveillance data were obtained from the electronic chart and pharmacy databases. Results: 240 participants completed the telephone interview. 68.8% had been discharged from a TCC. 87.1% reported having had a clinical breast examination, and 97.1% with remaining breast tissue reported having had a surveillance mammogram within the past year. Concordance with endocrine therapy varied between pharmacy dispensing records (95.4%) versus self-report (82.0%). Top participant-identified gaps in post-treatment services were: side effect management, achieving body weight and physical activity goals, psychosocial health, and sexual health. 71.7% of participants reported that they would have used a telephone follow-up clinic. Factors associated with telephone follow-up clinic use included younger age, no endocrine therapy, fatigue, and non-urban residence. Conclusions: Concordance with measurable follow-up goals (exam, mammography, endocrine therapy) was better than expected. Despite this, interest in a nurse-led BC telephone follow-up clinic was high. Perceived needs included management of symptoms plus support for life-style behavior change.

scholarly journals Stethoscope, “the friendly foe” – A study to evaluate bacterial contamination of stethoscopes and disinfection practices

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 887-893 ◽  
Author(s):  
Priya Datta ◽  
Mandeep Kaur ◽  
Sangeeta Rawat ◽  
Varsha Gupta ◽  
Jagdish Chander
Keyword(s):  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Methicillin Resistance ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Contamination Rate ◽  
Care Hospital ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Healthcare Associated

Introduction: Stethoscope is used to assess the health of patients but can also act as a potential source of disease transmission. The study was aimed to find out the contamination rate of stethoscopes, evaluate awareness and attitude of healthcare workers (HCWs) about stethoscope cleaning, and determine the efficacy of 70% alcohol as cleaning agent. Methodology: This hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary care hospital in October 2015 among healthcare workers. They were asked to fill a questionnaire followed by culturing the diaphragm and bell surfaces of their stethoscopes before and after cleaning with 70% isopropyl alcohol. Results: Out of 100 stethoscopes cultured, 56 were found to be contaminated at least with one microorganism. Acinetobacter cbc was the commonest contaminant followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae. Three out of twelve S. aureus strains showed methicillin resistance. Stethoscopes used in emergency areas were more contaminated when compared to wards and out-patient departments. Despite 100% awareness among HCWs, the importance of stethoscope cleaning is realized by only 70% who practice it regularly. Conclusion: Stethoscope is a potential vector for transmission of healthcare associated infections. Hence it is vital to clean it after each use to reduce the load of iatrogenic infections.

scholarly journals Knowledge and Attitudes Concerning SARS-CoV-2 among Healthcare Workers in Mirpur, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Positive Attitude ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Jammu And Kashmir ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Level Of Knowledge ◽  
Knowledge And Attitude ◽  
Age Range

Background: The healthcare workers are leading the fight against the coronavirus pandemic and are at great risk of acquiring the infection. The information on the knowledge and attitude of healthcare workers towards SARS‐CoV-2 is useful to plan awareness and educational programs. Aim: To assess the knowledge and attitude of healthcare workers toward SARS‐CoV-2 in Mirpur, AJK, Pakistan. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed during March and April 2020, on 468 healthcare workers in a tertiary care divisional headquarters teaching hospital of Mirpur, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data through a face to face approach. The data were organized and statistically analyzed through SPSS version 21.0. Results: A total of 520 healthcare workers were approached and 468 of them filled and returned the questionnaire, giving a response rate of 90.0%. The age range of the participants was 18 to 59 years with a mean of 31.5 ± 4.9 years. The majority of respondents were males (62.4%) and more than half of the participants (62.1%) had knowledge of the SARS‐CoV-2 outbreak and their main source of information was television (51.2%). Overall, 60.6% had sufficient knowledge of the disease and 79.7% had a positive attitude towards SARS‐CoV-2. Conclusion: The outcomes of our study revealed that overall healthcare workers had an acceptable level of knowledge and a positive attitude towards the SARS‐CoV-2 outbreak.

scholarly journals Waiting for Godot: A cross sectional survey based analysis of the hydroxychloroquine prophylaxis strategy against COVID-19 in India

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Merlin Moni ◽  
Thushara Madathil ◽  
Rahul Palabatla ◽  
Sabarish Balachandran ◽  
Fabia Edathadathil ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
Research Policy ◽  
Tertiary Care ◽  
National Level ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Tertiary Care Centre ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Online Social Media ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Prophylaxis Strategy

Background: India currently has the second largest burden of infections due to COVID-19. Health Care Worker (HCW) shortages are endemic to Indian healthcare. It should therefore be a huge priority to protect this precious resource as a critical component of the systemic response to this pandemic. Advisories from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have focused on using hydroxychloroquine prophylaxis against COVID-19 in at risk HCW. This prophylaxis strategy has no evidence. In further jeopardy there appear to insubstantial attempts to build this evidence as well. In this connection, we commissioned a survey within our Institution to estimate the penetration of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) use and use this to statistically model the impact of current ongoing studies in India. We also briefly review the literature on HCQ prophylaxis for COVID-19. Design and methods: A structured survey designed using RedCAP application was disseminated among healthcare professionals employed at an academic referral tertiary care centre via online social media platforms. The survey was kept open for the entire month of June 2020. The survey was additionally used to statistically model the size of studies required to comprehensively address the efficacy of HCQ in this setting.Results: 522 responses were received, of which 4 were incomplete. The ICMR strategy of 4 or more doses of HCQ was complete only in 15% of HCW in our survey. The majority of respondents were doctors (238, 46%). Amongst all category of responders, only 12% (n=63) received the full course. A majority of those who initiated the chemoprophylaxis with HCQ turned out to be medical professionals (59/63) with neither nurse nor other categories of healthcare workers accessing the medication. The respondents of our institutional survey did not report any life-threatening side effects. Presuming efficacy as per ICMR modelling for new registry trial on the lines of the published case control study, equal allocation between cases and controls and assuming a RR of 1.3.6, the power of such a study would be very low for n=2000 for event rates from 2.5-12.5%. Conclusion: We report the low penetration of HCQ chemoprophylaxis among the healthcare workers of our institution.  We highlight the inherent drawbacks in the study design of current national COVID related trial based on the statistical modelling of our survey results and published literature, and thereby emphasis the need of evidence-based strategies contributing to research policy at national level.

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