Nearly Two-Thirds of Workforce Vaccinated during Single-Day Event

(WILMINGTON, Del. – Oct. 23, 2019)

For the second year in a row, ChristianaCare vaccinated the majority of its 12,000 caregivers from the flu in a single day in a fun-filled event called #HitMeWithYourFluShot.

Downloadable:   PHOTOS   VIDEO

The event is designed to support ChristianaCare’s voluntary employee vaccination campaign that annually tops 90% of all employees vaccinated. The single-day event also doubles as an emergency preparedness drill, simulating the logistical challenges that would need to be managed if the health system ever needed to rapidly mobilize to vaccinate all of its employees in an emergency.

In a one-day blitz that spanned 100 locations in four states, from 3 a.m. to 9 p.m., ChristianaCare vaccinated 8,035 caregivers, beating its target and eclipsing last year’s record of 7,868.

“Our #HitMeWithYourFluShot campaign is a shining example of how we serve together, guided by our values of Love and Excellence,” said Marci Drees, M.D., MS, FACP, DTMH, FSHEA, chief infection prevention officer and hospital epidemiologist. “By vaccinating so many of our caregivers in a single day, we protect our employees, our patients and our community from influenza. We also lead by example, demonstrating the importance that everyone get an annual flu vaccination.”

During the event, flu vaccination stations operated for 18 consecutive hours at ChristianaCare’s two hospital campuses—Newark and Wilmington. At ChristanaCare’s satellite sites in Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New Jersey—nearly 100 locations — roving teams dropped off vaccination kits or administered vaccines so caregivers could quickly and easily get vaccinated. Those sites include primary care, specialty care, medical aid units, imaging, laboratory, rehabilitation services and non-clinical sites.

Enhancing the drill this year was the option of a drive-through vaccination station at ChristianaCare’s Newark campus. Employees who were not working that day could get vaccinated against the flu without ever departing their car. Many employees who used the drive-through location were able to cruise through while running their errands for the day, sometimes with the kids or family dog in the car.

Employees were encouraged to pre-register for their flu shot using paperless forms in the weeks leading up to the drill, which improved the efficiency of the actual event.

Between 36,400 and 61,200 Americans died from the flu last year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In addition, the flu hospitalized more than 500,000 people and sickened 40 million Americans.

Employees who were not vaccinated during the event will have other opportunities to get vaccinated this year.

Need an expert source? Our Experts, ChristianaCare's expert database, can help you find the right source for your next news story. Request an interview ➜

About ChristianaCare

Headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, ChristianaCare is one of the country’s most dynamic health care organizations, centered on improving health outcomes, making high-quality care more accessible and lowering health care costs. ChristianaCare includes an extensive network of primary care and outpatient services, home health care, urgent care centers, three hospitals (1,430 beds), a freestanding emergency department, a Level I trauma center and a Level III neonatal intensive care unit, a comprehensive stroke center and regional centers of excellence in heart and vascular care, cancer care and women’s health. It also includes the pioneering Gene Editing Institute.

ChristianaCare is nationally recognized as a great place to work, rated by Forbes as the 2nd best health system for diversity and inclusion, and the 29th best health system to work for in the United States, and by IDG Computerworld as one of the nation’s Best Places to Work in IT. ChristianaCare is rated by Healthgrades as one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals and continually ranked among the nation’s best by U.S. News & World Report, Newsweek and other national quality ratings. ChristianaCare is a nonprofit teaching health system with more than 260 residents and fellows. With its groundbreaking Center for Virtual Health and a focus on population health and value-based care, ChristianaCare is shaping the future of health care.

####