How to create a sustainable workforce through an annual flu vaccination program with Flu Xpress
Posted on 4th March 2021 at 13:54
Why is it now so important to have a flu vaccination programme in the workplace?
Planning for your flu vaccination programme in advance is critical as providers of the vaccine need to order their stocks early in the year and your work force needs to be immunized before the start of the flu season which generally begins around January.
The Centre for Disease Control and Preventions current advice is to host a flu vaccination programme in the workplace
The most significant benefit for Employers in having a work-based flu vaccination programme:
Reduced absenteeism and reduced cost impacts through sick leave and taking time off to have a vaccination at the doctors or medical centre.
Benefits for employees having a work-based immunisation programme:
It mitigates risk to your employees
Improved morale, a feeling of being looked after, improved wellbeing
More convenient to have flu vaccination at work rather than a health care setting
Improved health outcomes for the individual
Reduction in absences due to ill health and visits to the doctors
How much is the flu costing the UK economy?
In an article in Personnel Today reporting on research conducted by The International Longevity Centre UK, it established that a flu vaccination programme could prevent up to 626,000 cases of flu per year, saving £28.9 million in adverted sick day costs, in additional to increased productivity at work and up to 8,800 premature deaths.
This article highlights a survey carried out by Xperthr, where they contacted 287 employers representing 398,493 employees, this research began in March 2020 at the beginning of the Pandemic in the UK, so this may have had an impact on the current figures, but the data points to a mean absence rate per member of staff of 2.8% (6.1 days) costing on average £570 per employee in 2017. This survey highlights the significant financial impacts on a business and so ensuring your teams are protected, a planned approach to a vaccine programme impacts on your staff’s physical health as well as the financial health of the business.
What are the differences between flu symptoms and Covid-19?
|
Sympton |
Covid-19 |
Flu |
Cold |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Dry Cough |
Frequently |
Frequently |
Little |
|
Fever |
Frequently |
Frequently |
Rare |
|
Runny Nose |
Little |
Sometimes |
Frequently |
|
Sore Throat |
Sometimes |
Sometimes |
Frequently |
|
Breathlessness |
Frequently |
None |
None |
|
Headache |
Sometimes |
Frequently |
Rare |
|
Body Aches |
Sometimes |
Frequently |
Frequently |
|
Sneezing |
Rare |
None |
Frequently |
|
Fatigue |
Sometimes |
Frequently |
Sometimes |
|
Diarrhoea |
Little |
Sometimes |
None |
What is the recovery time from Influenza/Flu?
It can take up to two weeks to recover, you may not be infectious but you can still feel weak and tired and to avoid further complications, you will usually be advised to rest for the full two weeks.
This has a significant effect on the work place, with the rates of infection and the time out of work and its critically important your staff can differentiate the various symptoms between cold, flu and now Covid 19.
How do the flu symptoms differ to the symptoms of a common cold?
A cold will generally come on slowly, only affect your nose and throat rather than your lungs, which is why it is generally referred to as a ‘head cold’ and you can usually carry on working.
If you have flu symptoms you would not be well enough to go into work and you would be advised by a medical practitioner to stay home.
Flu, unlike a cold is a respiratory illness which can affect your lungs. Flu can be dangerous for those with underlying health conditions, like diabetes and heart conditions, and those will be offered the flu vaccine by their GP.
The flu is highly contagious. You are at your most infectious from the first day you experience symptoms and for up to 7 days, so you are often at work when you first experience the early onset of flu.
To find out more about the symptoms of flu visit the NHS website
If you’d like to find out more about our Workplace Flu Vaccination Clinics, or get a quote, please get in touch with a member of our team here at Flu Xpress.
Tagged as: Workplace Flu Vaccinations
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