Improving Inpatient Pneumococcal and Influenza Vaccination Rates

Since 2004, pharmacists at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics have screened all adult inpatients for pneumococcal and influenza vaccination. Rates of screening patients improved to nearly 100% between 2004 and 2009, but the rate of actual administration of the vaccines hovered around 45%. A review of the process identified failure modes. This prompted a collaborative effort between pharmacy and nursing for improvement that focused on ensuring that the ordered vaccinations were actually administered. The rates of administration improved from approximately 45% in June 2009 to approximately 78% by mid-2010.