First trust in country reaches 75 per cent flu uptake

Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (DBTH) has been announced as the first NHS trust in the country to have vaccinated 75 per cent of their frontline staff for the second year running.

The hospital administered 3,385 vaccinations in just five weeks, using their ‘all hands-on deck’ model which involves occupational health and well-being practitioners, as well as peer vaccinators, visiting wards and departments to provide special drop-in sessions for weekend workers and night staff.

Richard Parker, chief executive at the DBTH, said: “This is another fantastic achievement for the Trust and one which shows how caring our staff are and how dedicated they are to protecting our patients. This will help us to reduce the impact of the flu virus both in our hospitals and in the communities we serve. It’s particularly important that we hit the target this year as we’re expecting a particularly bad flu season this winter. I want to say well done to the vaccination team for their tireless efforts, and to the 3,385 members of staff who’ve had their jabs.”

Danny Mortimer, chief executive of NHS Employers, which runs the national flu fighter campaign, said: “This is a truly impressive achievement and shows real dedication to the flu fighter campaign. In order to stem the tide of infection, it’s especially important for frontline health and care workers to be vaccinated, as they will have the greatest contact with vulnerable people, such as the elderly and the very young. We hope other trusts will follow this stellar example before what many experts are predicting could be a very challenging winter.”