Development of a flexible, computerized database to prioritize, record, and report influenza vaccination rates for healthcare personnel.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the method used to develop a flexible, computerized database for recording and reporting rates of influenza vaccination among healthcare personnel who were classified by their individual levels (hereafter, "tiers") of direct patient contact.
DESIGN: Three-year descriptive summary.
SETTING: Large, academic, tertiary care medical center in the United States. PARTICIPANTS: All of the medical center's healthcare personnel.
METHODS: The need to develop a computer-based system to record direct patient care tiers and vaccination data for healthcare personnel was identified. A plan that was to be implemented in stages over several seasons was developed.
RESULTS: Direct patient care tiers were defined by consensus opinion on the basis of the extent, frequency, and intensity of direct contact with patients. The definitions of these tiers evolved over 3 seasons. Direct patient care classifications were assigned and recorded in a computerized database, and data regarding the receipt of vaccination were tracked by using the same database. Data were extracted to generate reports of individual, departmental, and institutional vaccination rates, both overall and according to direct patient care tiers.
CONCLUSIONS: Development of a computerized database to record direct patient care tiers for individual healthcare workers is a daunting but manageable task. Widespread use of these direct patient care definitions will facilitate uniform comparisons of vaccination rates between institutions. This computerized database can easily be used by infection control personnel to accomplish several other key tasks, including vaccination triage in the context of shortage or delay, prioritization of personnel to receive interventions in times of crisis, and monitoring the status of other employee health or occupational health measures.