Even as we continue to care for COVID-19 patients, we must shift some of our focus to the upcoming flu season. This year, more than ever, it’s imperative that everyone participate in our systemwide flu campaign, which runs from Sept. 13 through Nov. 8, 2021. Not only will everyone participating help keep us and our patients safe, it will hopefully help reduce the strain on our hospitals and EDs, which are already busy caring for both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients.
Houston Methodist is a leader in the number of employees who get vaccinated annually. Here are some important facts:
- Influenza outbreaks in hospitals and long-term care facilities are often caused by low employee vaccination rates. This is why the CDC recommends that all eligible health care workers are vaccinated.
- If you do get the flu, it is often milder after vaccination. Those with conditions like diabetes and lung disease and those who are older or pregnant have fewer hospitalizations after vaccination.
- It’s our responsibility to help protect the old and young in our communities and homes because they are at risk for serious illness from the flu.
In order to receive your flu vaccine, you must sign into your Employee Health Portal in MARS or text “HM Employee Health” to 45991 and complete your flu vaccination consent form as a first step. Once logged into your Employee Health Portal, click on OTHER HEALTH RESOURCES, VACCINE CONSENTS and complete the INFLUENZA/FLU vaccine consent questionnaire. You must access the My Appointments section in your portal to schedule your flu vaccine. Walk-ins will not be accepted.
- If you receive your flu vaccine outside of Houston Methodist, you must submit documentation via your Employee Health Portal. Once logged into your Employee Health Portal, click on Other Health Resources “Flu Resources” and submit proof of your flu vaccine.
- Vaccination record of 2021-22 influenza vaccine administered elsewhere must include the employee name, provider name and signature, vaccine name, route, dose and date of vaccination.
The same actions we’re taking to combat COVID-19 will also reduce flu cases. Remember to practice excellent hand washing and cough etiquette, wear your facemask continuously in addition to a face shield when providing direct patient care activities. If you do get ill, do not report to work and check with your manager and Employee Health prior to returning to work.
Injectable flu vaccinations offered for the 2021-2022 season protect from three or four viruses, are thimerosal preservative-free as well as egg and latex-free. Influenza vaccination is strongly recommended for those over the age of 65 and pregnant women. The high dose injectable flu vaccine will also be available to employees over the age of 65 around the middle of October. Injectable flu vaccines do not contain live virus, so you cannot become infected from the vaccine.
Please refer to Houston Methodist’s flu policy for more details. The highlights are:
- All Houston Methodist employees must receive or provide documentation of flu vaccination no later than Nov. 8 to be considered compliant with our policy.
- If requesting a medical or religious exemption from Influenza Vaccination, it must be requested via email to your local Employee Health clinic no later than Oct. 25. Once requested, Employee Health will place the appropriate flu exemption documents on your Employee Health portal. You are responsible for completing all exemption documents and uploading supporting documentation onto your portal. Exemption documents will not be reviewed until all requested documentation has been uploaded onto your Employee Health portal. Religious and medical exemptions received after Oct 25 are not guaranteed to meet the Nov. 8 flu campaign deadline. Submission of a religious or medical exemption does not guarantee approval.
You must submit a completed exemption form each year that you are requesting an exemption and it must be approved. Approved exemptions are valid only for the year they were approved.
- It is critically important that we keep our patients safe; therefore, there are serious consequences for employees who don’t get vaccinated and don’t have a valid exemption completed by this year’s Nov. 8 deadline. Failure to comply will result in the following consequences:
- Placement on unpaid suspension for up to 14 days so the employee may become compliant (PTO may not be used during this period). However, employees who have been suspended previously for failure to comply with this policy last year or with other required competencies on a timely basis will be immediately terminated.
- Employees who have not received the immunization or have not been approved for an exemption by the end of the 14-day suspension period will be terminated.
- Non-vaccinated employees will be required to wear an appropriate face mask or respirator based on their work area requirements AND a face shield at all times because of the increased risk of unknowingly spreading influenza virus. Similar to COVID-19, the flu virus can be spread even when a person does not feel sick. Failure to comply with the protective measure requirements for unvaccinated individuals during flu season will result in the following consequences:
- First incident for failure to comply with required protective measures: Three-day suspension (unpaid)
- Subsequent incident: termination.
If you have any questions, refer to our flu vaccine FAQ.
Complying with our flu policy is one more way to keep the patient at the center of everything we do. I hope you will join me in getting your flu vaccine and doing everything to slow down the spread of flu this season as we also continue to combat COVID-19.
Thank you for your compliance and for all you do to keep our patients safe.
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