EC Paediatrics

Introduction: Influenza virus infection causes morbidity and mortality. Health personnel are one of the priority groups to be vaccinated.

Objective: To determine the influenza vaccination coverage of health personnel working with children in a private health provider in Uruguay in 2019 and 2020, and the reasons why they were vaccinated or not.

Materials and Methods: Observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study. Data collection in 2020 through an anonymous questionnaire. Registered the Following variables: age place of work (emergency, hospitalization or polyclinic), function, risk of severe disease, vaccination or non-vaccination in 2019 and 2020, and reasons for vaccination or non-vaccination.

Results: 204 workers completed the survey. In 2019, 73% were vaccinated and in 2020, 77.5% (p > 0.05). Emergency health personnel in Montevideo had the highest vaccination rate (90.7% in 2019; 93% in 2020), followed by emergency health personnel in Ciudad de la Costa and hospitalization. According to occupation, more than 95% vaccination was recorded for physicians (2019 and 2020); for nursing graduates and auxiliaries, 68.6% in 2019 and 75.7% in 2020; for non-clinical staff, 33% in 2019 and 41% in 2020. The increase in vaccinated people in 2020 was not significant in any of the occupations.

21% of respondents were at risk of severe disease; 65% of these were vaccinated in 2019 and 74.4% in 2020. All pregnant women in the sample were vaccinated.

Most frequent reasons mentioned for vaccination (2019 and 2020): "prevention" (50.5%), and "being health personnel" (36%). Those who were not vaccinated were "never sick" (19%). Those who did not get the vaccine in 2019, but did in 2020, more frequently cited the "pandemic" as a reason.

Conclusion: In this health provider, the percentage of workers in contact with children who adhered to influenza vaccination in 2019 and 2020 was greater than 70%. There was no significant increase due to the pandemic. Coverage in polyclinics and for non-medical health personnel, particularly health personnel with risk factors for severe disease, should be improved.

 Keywords: Influenza Vaccines; Health Personnel

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