Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health

With a goal of increasing seasonal flu vaccination rates by 5 percent, the Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health embarked on a wide-ranging flu vaccine campaign in 2013. The effort included provider training and education, special promotional materials and a radio PSA.

Thanks to a grant from the Indiana State Department of Health and the time and effort of our dedicated staff, so far more than 140 people representing 25 healthcare providers were trained on giving flu vaccine, nearly 3,500 doses of flu vaccine were administered to area school children, and 1,665 radio spots promoting flu vaccinations aired on local radio stations. Although there are still a few more months to go before final results can be tallied, the campaign has certainly proved popular with healthcare providers and patients.

As part of its outreach to high-risk groups such as children and the elderly, Immunization staff were sent out to promote, administer and assure access to local flu vaccine. Partnering with Parkview Health, the department assisted in delivering more than 3,500 doses of FluMist to students at Title One schools in Fort Wayne. More than 300 city and county employees were also vaccinated during a two-day vaccination effort.

To emphasize the need for healthcare workers to get vaccinated, the department provided seven nurse-led trainings to staff at nursing and assisted living facilities, as well as at the two major hospital systems and a local residency program.

Besides training, providers were given tools and resources to increase awareness of flu vaccination among their staff and patients, including specially designed buttons and posters depicting high-risk patient populations and using the campaign themes “Do it For Me” and the subsequent “I Did It for You.” The department also distributed bottles of hand sanitizer with its logo for www.FighttheFlu.org.

To increase awareness of flu vaccination to the public, the department purchased 30-second PSA spots on nine different radio stations. The spots aired over a period of six weeks. Regular Facebook and Twitter posts and a news release urging residents to get vaccinated supported the campaign.

For more information, contact John Silcox, Director of Communications, Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health at 260-449-7395.